Wonderful “Excellent Firefighter” merit badge, of Soviet manufacture, dating back to the 1970s. Established on 30^th September 1970, the decoration was awarded to the militarized, professional firefighting personnel of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR, as well as to firemen of other ministries and departments, for the achievement of high quality standards in fire prevention and extinction. Manufactured in gold-finished light alloy, the badge, of oval, convex shape, shows, on the recto, a large, red enameled star, surmounted by an oblong shield with the technical emblem of a hammer crossed with a wrench: the award's background, radiating, is, on the contrary, bordered at the bottom by a ribbon, also enameled, with the lettering «ОТЛИЧНИК ПОЖАРНОЙ ОХРАНЫ», that is to say, literally, “Excellent Firefighting Operator”. Complete with aluminium screw back fastener, this last one marked «ЛЕНИНГРАДСКИЙ МОНЕТНЫЙ ДВОР» (“Leningrad Mint”), still endowed with its original certificate, released in 1975 to Sergeant Major Arkadij Ivanovič Kirsanov by the Internal Affairs Direction of the Perm Regional Executive Committee, the badge is sold in excellent conservation conditions: a true killer deal for all post-1945 Soviet memorabilia collectors!