In aluminum, paint and lacquer; 30.8 mm tall x 32.4 mm wide. The inscription in the red band is "Road of Life". The map in the center shows four railway lines running across Lake Ladoga. The reverse has raised inscription "The First Train. 7 February 1943". There is a maker mark of the Special Design Bureau of the X-Ray Equipment in Leningrad / St. Petersburg (which apparently produced badges as a sideline during the Soviet era.)

The makeshift railway lines were built over the frozen lake in the winter of 1942/43. It was an inventive solution to supplying the be

In aluminum, paint and lacquer; 30.8 mm tall x 32.4 mm wide. The inscription in the red band is "Road of Life". The map in the center shows four railway lines running across Lake Ladoga. The reverse has raised inscription "The First Train. 7 February 1943". There is a maker mark of the Special Design Bureau of the X-Ray Equipment in Leningrad / St. Petersburg (which apparently produced badges as a sideline during the Soviet era.)

The makeshift railway lines were built over the frozen lake in the winter of 1942/43. It was an inventive solution to supplying the besieged Leningrad which came after the first disastrous 1941/42 winter of the blockade. Located farther to the north than the usual routes taken by the trucks travelling the famous Road of Life, the railway trains mostly escaped the attention of the marauding Luftwaffe. In the remaining months before the spring thaw, the trains delivered precious supplies to the starving city and evacuated civilians, and thus were instrumental in saving countless lives. The badge was likely issued to one of the builders of the railway lines or a participant of dangerous delivery missions.
$30.00  Add to cart