Sino-Soviet Order of Friendship

[Erno]

I've been meaning to ask about this one for a while. I bought it at an auction a while ago because it seemed like a good price ($20), but I know almost nothing about it, other than the fact that it's a Sino-Soviet Order of Friendship, apparently meant as a decoration for Russians who took part in the Korean War. Do you guys think this is a real one or a copy?



Thank you in advance!

I also bought an Order of the Patriotic War First Class at the same auction, but I know that it's the 1985 reissue.

[Leaftree]

The medal itself looks to be original from the pictures provided, but the suspension is not. The ones that I have seen are only the ribbon, with no metal plate behind it.
This medal has the incorrect ribbon for it, this ribbon is for the Order of the Red Banner.

Here is a link for some more information:
Chinese-Soviet Friendship Medal - The Soviet Military Awards Page Forum

Regards,

[Erno]

The medal itself looks to be original from the pictures provided, but the suspension is not. The ones that I have seen are only the ribbon, with no metal plate behind it.
This medal has the incorrect ribbon for it, this ribbon is for the Order of the Red Banner.

Here is a link for some more information:
Chinese-Soviet Friendship Medal - The Soviet Military Awards Page Forum

Regards,

Thank you very much for this! I would not have known that this was the wrong ribbon. Was this something that was commonly done by veterans, or would it be something that was done by a collector later on?

[Auke]

Re-ribboning was common practice in the Soviet Union. Many of these medals were awarded to foreigners (included Soviet military personnel) and I'm sure they didn't have access to replacement ribbons. The topic referred to above also has a few examples of incorrect ribbons. I have seen a number of other foreign orders and medals being refitted on Soviet suspensions so they were more in line with the rest of the recipient's awards.

[Erno]

Re-ribboning was common practice in the Soviet Union. Many of these medals were awarded to foreigners (included Soviet military personnel) and I'm sure they didn't have access to replacement ribbons. The topic referred to above also has a few examples of incorrect ribbons. I have seen a number of other foreign orders and medals being refitted on Soviet suspensions so they were more in line with the rest of the recipient's awards.

Thank you! Although it isn't original to the medal, I think the replaced ribbon is actually more interesting.

My girlfriend is Chinese, which is really the only reason I bought this medal, but now that I've had it for a while, I quite like it.