Silver, enamels; 45.4 mm tall x 47.1 mm wide; weighs 27.1 g without the screw plate. This specimen was manufactured in 1943 at the Moscow Mint. Features screw post base and slightly curved up mint mark with a dash over the last letter in the word "Monetnyi". The screw post base is "sunk in" below the surface of the reverse. The enamel is of slightly lighter shade of red and noticeably finer quality than the more recent issues. /N. Strekalov, V. Durov, Order of the Red Star, pp. 230, 231/.

In excellent condition, especially outstanding for the early screw post base ve

Silver, enamels; 45.4 mm tall x 47.1 mm wide; weighs 27.1 g without the screw plate. This specimen was manufactured in 1943 at the Moscow Mint. Features screw post base and slightly curved up mint mark with a dash over the last letter in the word "Monetnyi". The screw post base is "sunk in" below the surface of the reverse. The enamel is of slightly lighter shade of red and noticeably finer quality than the more recent issues. /N. Strekalov, V. Durov, Order of the Red Star, pp. 230, 231/.

In excellent condition, especially outstanding for the early screw post base version. The enamel shows a beautiful luster and has only a few minuscule contact marks that are practically unnoticeable to the naked eye; there is none of the usual flaking, chips or rubbing. The center medallion shows only a minimal wear to the high points, its details are beautifully preserved. Very attractive even patina to silver on both sides. The screw post is full length, over 12.5 mm measured from its base, and comes with an original screw plate in silver. Overall, this is an extremely attractive example of a mid-war Order of the Red Star.

Vasiliy Chebotarev was born in 1919 and joined the Red Army in 1942 in the Kursk region, apparently in the early part of the year just before the area was overrun by the Germans over the course of their summer offensive that ended at Stalingrad. In June 1943, already having the rank of sergeant, he took part in the Battle of Kursk as an antiaircraft gun crew commander with the 743rd Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment, 5th Antiaircraft Division, Reserves of the Supreme Command. Deployed in support of the 7th Guards Army, Steppe Front, near the town of Shebekino southeast of Voronezh, this unit was thrown into action in a tank-destroying role almost from the start of the battle. On 6 July, the second day of the German Operation Zitadelle, the Soviet troops on the southern flank of the Kursk salient faced an onslaught of some 150 panzers of the III Panzer Corps, Army Detachment Kempf near the village of Batratskaya Dacha. The Germans in the southern sector had advanced some 25 miles on that day and were getting close to making a decisive breakthrough, provoking the combat deployment of Rokossovky's armored reserves - which eventually would lead to the famous tank-on-tank engagement at Prokhorovka. In the meantime, the antiaircraft artillerymen 743rd AAA Rgt. were putting up a desperate fight against the massed panzer assault. Over the course of action, Chebotarev exhibited outstanding bravery and skills as a gun commander. He and his team destroyed four enemy tanks, including two PzKpfw VI Tigers - an extraordinary achievement for a Soviet gun crew, especially in a single engagement.

On 17 July, right after Hitler cancelled Zitadelle and gave an order to pull the main panzer forces from action, commander of Chebotarev's regiment recommended the heroic sergeant for the Order of the Red Star. (One may think of it as an unfairly low award considering the magnitude of Chebotarev's feat, but this was common practice: Soviet command was generally very stingy with decorations at the time of the Battle of Kursk. The rules would relax significantly, and higher decorations would be issued far more freely only later on after the crossing of the Dnieper and especially in the final year of WW2). The award was bestowed by a general order of the 5th Antiaircraft Division on 23 July 1943, when the Battle of Kursk was still raging on but its outcome was no longer in doubt, and the Soviet troops were on the offensive everywhere. Although Chebotarev continued to serve through the rest of WW2, it remained his only high decoration of the war. As of late December 1946, he still had the rank of sergeant and was on active duty as a gun commander, at that point with the 14th Guards Mechanized Regiment.

Research Materials: photocopy of the award record card, award commendation, and relevant pages of the award decree.
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