Soviet Russian WW2 LIBERATION OF BELGRADE Medal Var.2 ORIGINAL 1940s ++Condition

Description

Medal for the Liberation of Belgrade, late 1940s issue.
This is GUARANTEED 100% ORIGINAL Soviet medal made at the Soviet mint and officially issued by the Soviet authorities – NOT a replica or post-Soviet reissue!
In brass; 32.0 mm wide. The medal features U-shaped eyelet, a so-called Variation 2.
In VERY FINE to EXCELLENT condition. The medal is free of any serious flaws. There is light natural wear to high points but the details of the lettering and artwork are nicely preserved and crisp on both sides. There is attractive even patina to brass throughout, no significant blemishes or oxidation spots. There are some minor dings to the raised edge, mostly on the reverse, but they are not detractive. There are no nicks or bumps.
The medal comes on original suspension in brass. The ribbon is relatively recent, shows only minor wear (Soviet war veterans often wore their medals, so the ribbons were routinely discarded and replaced as they got soiled.)
The Medal for the Liberation of Belgrade is the hardest to find among the Soviet “Capture” and “Liberation” campaign medals. The battle for the capital of Yugoslavia was won with relative ease: the actual storming of the city took only seven days, from 14 – 20 October, 1944. This was of course vastly different from the protracted battles for cities such as Koenigsberg, Warsaw or Budapest that evolved massive numbers of Soviet troops. It helped of course that the Soviet 3rd Ukrainian Front was assisted in a major way by the Yugoslav Liberation Army under Tito, a large and experienced force well-equipped by the U.S. and U.K. Comparatively speaking, not many Soviet troops participated in the battle for Belgrade, and this is why the medal is so scarce.
The nice example we are offering is definitely a genuine, official award of 1940s era – not one of the multitude of fakes we’ve seen on the market in recent years!
FREE SHIPPING
(USPS 1st cl. Mail) WITHIN USA ONLY!
We WILL NOT ship our eBay items outside USA.