Silver, 14 K gold (hammer and sickle emblem), enamels. Measures 46.6 mm in height, 44.5 mm in width; weighs 24.4 g without the screw plate. This very attractive and interesting early screw back version features slightly concave shape and vaguely defined star-shaped counter-relief to the reverse. There is a rudimentary ray under the blade of the saber near the hilt. The mint mark is in slightly curved down lines.

This piece was manufactured at the Krasnokamsk Mint in 1943 and although the serial number range for this version appears to be pretty wide (34787 - 71998 according to Mondvor.narod.ru), it is far more scarce than the range would suggest. First of all, a large part of the range was assigned to Moscow Mint production; also, the range is shared by two Krasnokamsk sub-variations, one with a curved down mint mark (the earlier version, such as this example) and one with arched mint mark.

In very fine to excellent condition. The enamel shows magnificent luster and shows almost no wear visible to the naked eye. There are a few miniscule surface flakes at the tips and edges of the top and upper right arms of the star, all of them nearly unnoticeable without magnification. There are only a few microscopic contact marks elsewhere. The golden hammer & sickle emblem has a couple of minor nicks, certainly neither glaring nor very detractive. Nice patina to the silver parts on both sides. The screw post is full length, nearly 14.5 mm, and comes with an original early screw plate in silver.

Born in 1912 in the Bryansk region of Russia, Dmitriy Shkuratov joined the military in 1935 and became a member of the Communist Party in 1938. A career military officer, he took part in the Patriotic War from its first day of 22 June 1941. In some of the first defensive battles of the war against the German Army Group North in Estonia and Lithuania, Shkuratov, then a lieutenant, served as an artillery battery commander and was able to repel numerous attacks. His battery destroyed 16 enemy tanks in Estonia, significantly slowing the pace of enemy advance and allowing the Soviet troops to make an orderly retreat. On 22 July, the day when the Germans broke through the Soviet defensive line between Tartu and Pärnu, Shkuratov personally engaged a German steamer that had approached the Chudskoe Lake and was firing on the Soviet positions. By firing over open sights, Shkuratov scored direct hits on the steamer and sank it. [Note that it took place in the same general area where the Novgorod Prince Alexander Nevsky had destroyed a detachment of the Teutonic knights in the famous "Battle of the Ice" some 700 years earlier].

Two days later, Shkuratov and a group of 13 of his soldiers got cut off from the rest of their unit while conducting reconnaissance. After spending 9 days in an encirclement in an area with flat terrain lacking any protection and in constant presence of the numerically superior enemy, Shkuratov was able to lead his group safely out of the trap and rejoined his unit.

In fighting near the city of ?iauliai in northern Lithuania, Skhuratov and his battery were credited with destroying up to 10 additional enemy tanks. Shkuratov demonstrated a particular bravery and presence of mind during the enemy assault on the military airdrome near ?iauliai: he positioned one his guns to fire over open sights and just as the German motorized infantry broke onto the airfield, fired a single shot at the aviation bomb storage, blowing up the storage and tens of enemy soldiers.

From August 1941 - early September 1942, Shkuratov time and again showed exceptional bravery and skills while defending Leningrad. On 15 December, his battery destroyed two German anti tank guns, smashed several weapon nests, and killed as many as 70 enemy soldiers in fighting on the Oranienbaum beachhead, a small coastal area west of Leningrad where Shkuratov's division would remain for the duration of the Battle of Leningrad. In that skirmish, Shkuratov replaced a fallen gunman and personally aimed one of the guns. On 23 July 1942, Shkuratov was instrumental in saving a disabled heavy KV tank stuck in no man's land by providing accurate fire support and thus allowing the repair and evacuation of the tank. During the following month, his battery by firing over open sights destroyed four weapon emplacements and two dugouts occupied by enemy troops.

On 2 September 1942, the commander and political commissar of Shkuratov's rifle regiment jointly recommended him for his first decoration of the war, the Order of the Red Star. The decoration was bestowed upon Lt. Shkuratov on 18 September of that year by a decree of the Leningrad Front. In view of his achievements, it may appear astonishing that all he got was such a relatively humble award, but that was more of a norm than exception in the early period of the war.

The Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd cl. #65161 was Shkuratov's second and final decoration of WW2. He earned it during Operation Iskra ("Spark"), the decisive Soviet offensive that after many previous failed or only partly successful attempts finally broke the siege of Leningrad and drove the Germans away from the city. Shkuraytov's position at the time was the Chief of Artillery, 328th Rifle Regiment, 48th Rifle Division, 2nd Shock Army. According to the subsequent award commendation, Shkuratov personally reconnoitered enemy positions and in true-and-tried practice, positioned his guns to fire over open sights for maximum effectiveness. By using these bold tactics, he successfully destroyed enemy positions allowing this regiment to achieve all of its goals while breaking out of the Oranienbaum position and advancing deep into the enemy-held territory. Shkuratov was soon recommended for the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st cl. by his division commander but inexplicably, the award was then downgraded to the Order of the Red Star by the commander of the 45th Rifle Corps. In the end, Capt. Shkuratov received the Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd cl. which was bestowed on 8 February 1944 by the command of the 2nd Shock Army.

After the war, Shkuratov remained on active duty in the military and in the immediate post-war period, served as a deputy commander of a Guards mechanized division and attended an advanced artillery officer school. As of 1950, he had the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was awarded with three decorations for length of service: a Medal for Combat Service in 1947, Order of the Red Star in 1950, and Order of the Red Banner in Dec. 1956.

Research Materials: photocopy of the award record card and award commendations for both WW2 decorations. Detailed information about the 48th Rifle Division can be found in Volume VIII Red Legions of Chales Sharp's book series on Soviet order of battle in WWII