This is another post on Soviet thematics. You can see a previous for example here.
Now, the collection of photos from the 80s, the period of time when the Soviet Union was near to collapse. The famous “Perestroika” or “Rebuilding” started in 1986 or so.
It has been said that it’s always darkest before the dawn, see yourself if this is true for these photos.
These photos are from a collection that is targeted on the pre-Democratic period of Soviet Union, taken from different public sources like magazines, newspapers and internet, from both sides – from Soviet and Western.
A soldier and a telephone booth.
Pioneers.
Some Soviet music band…
Red Square, in the middle of Moscow near the Kremlin, and a Military parade is taking place on it.
This is a shroe of Black Sea in the summer. Soviet people could not visit other countries on their vacations so they all had come each year to the Black Sea.
“Glory to a Working Class” is written on those three houses
The Communist party assembly.
Soviet village life.
Some military general.
Fixing LADA 2101
In Soviet shops there were no variety of things. In every shop only 2-3 things were sold – for example only 2 or 3 types of the Soviet women handbag was sold in every shop across all the country! No Gucci or Armani or any non-luxury Chineese stuff – only 2 or 3 types of any merchandise, produced on Soviet factories. So almost all the people had the same things, the same cloths, same furniture. There was no variety at all!
Also all the Western books were censored.
Russian prisons said to be the most awful place on Earth.
This is typical countryside interrior in Russia, even nowadays.
Again military parade, now in St. Petersburg.
If the person was in prison he got some tatoos. Usually only people who were in prison got a tatoo, and every tatoo had some special meaning, so if he went to prison or to police the experts could easily identify types of crimes he commited and years in prison he spent just looking on one’s tatoos.
The subway stations in Russian cities were like palaces. These pillars had a crystal windows and light inside so they were magically glowing.
There are almost no people on the station – that’s because people were not allowed to wander during the daytime, everybody had to work, if somebody was wandering he could be arrested.
Here you can see what I wrote above. All the shops in Russia were limited to 2-3 types of merchandise, all over the country, in every city or a small village same things were sold, produced on a few Russian state owned plants.
There was a cult of bread in Russia. Every Russian schoolboy knew that this is a special machine to harvest grain, and all the students were taught not to waste even small piece of bread.
Army in Russia is compulsory, and many people say that army often is as bad as prison. People are often tortured there.
The USA was a real threat and menace to Soviet Union, so every few weeks there were training alarms when people had to show their ability to hide fast and to use things like these gas masks.
Another military parade, they were very popular in Soviet Russia.
And again a Parade.
In late 80s skateboards were allowed for Russian kids. Only 2 types of skateboards were produced, so every kid who had a skateboard had one of those two types.
This shot is again from Russian prison.
Many people think that they are happy they live after the Soviet Union collapse, but some older ones are nostalgic and dream about old Soviet Times.
Some fotos are realy greate! I’m not old, but when I see these fotos… nostalgia
Thank you for these! Your blog is great.
This is my childhood…
I imagine the soviet band pictured had their horns freeze to their lips playing outside in winter.
These photos are fascinating. I view it from the United States where I was taught to fear the Soviet Union and everyone had to say negative things about communism. The pictures show a simple and hard life, but I often wonder if my country made it harder. I would love to read (in English, my Russian is very weak) stories from people who lived in the Soviet Union.
I’m the gothic-metal musiciant, so if I lived at soviet times, I were wanted. Sometimes it is not easy to understand for me.
No you weren’t if you had normal work.
Some pictures are amazing. I have just spend 2 hours reading your site. It’s really great. Best regards, Chris from Poland.
Excelent photos with invalid interptretation.
The pictures are really amazing. I grew up in Moscow in 80s. It was great time. We’re children of 80s never been afraid anything, including USA.
. I miss thouse days. My first skateboard’s been saved by my 
)
im australian, my wife bulgarian, last time i was in bulgaria i found in a market a new condition 1980s russian skateboard, i was a mad australian skater from the 70s, so this board is a treasure for me ,i think probably the only one in australia. glad to here it has a brother somewhere .
I was proud my country when I was whatching military parades on 9th May. -:)
“…” I was taught to fear the Soviet Union and everyone had to say negative things about communism”
Unless you were an actual communist which was a legal party in the USA. Perhaps you should have gone to a university where there were many apologists for the USSR, Stalin, etc, who also blamed America for the Cold war – Noam Chomsky is lauded and very wealthy. Lets not forget how Hollywood loves Castro. I am wondering who exactly made everyone say negative things about communism…. perhaps people made up their own minds.
“I am wondering who exactly made everyone say negative things about communism…. perhaps people made up their own minds.”
Yeah, right! The propaganda machine in the US and in the rest of the capitalist western world wasn’t exactly lagging behind its Soviet counterpart. And it still isn’t. Psyops, anyone?
Besides, it’s always an interesting fact that communism appeals to a lot more people in countries who actually has experienced communism than in countries who have not. Germany is a microcosms of this interesting fact. In eastern Germany, who in fact experienced communism, there are twenty to thirty times more supporters of communism than in western Germany, who have never experienced communism.
Didn’t people get thrown to jails in USA for being communists? I think in those days it was like the worst thing, to be called a communist. You’ll immediately turn all your friends into enemies and bring close attention of the authorities.
People in the USA who were communists were not thrown in jail. But, they were isolated from others. Communists were frowned upon by most people. You were considered “weird” and as though something was wrong with you.
The last one is probably a photo from finnish WWII propaganda, mentioned above. (http://englishrussia.com/?p=385) The style is the same, and it says “There’s no reason for grief. Another cigarette – and a good sleep”
Foto№5
Red Square, in the middle of London near, and a Military parade is taking place on it.)))))))))))))))))))))))))))
The picture with “Glory to a Working Class” written on those three houses is in St. Petersburg. I’ve been to the first building many times, because my friend used to live there. Guess what? I was passing by there last year and those signs were still there.
Wouldn’t waste a piece of bread? My wife, Katja, still will not waste or throw away even a piece of old stale bread! Better to toast it and make croutons, and if that doesn’t work, save it to feed to birds!
BigDog,
Your experience in the United States may have been different, but as a curious child in the 70s and 80s I was rebuked harshly for asking honest questions about communism. The party line was simply that it was wrong and un-American and if you didn’t pledge likewise, or appeared intellectually curious about Marxist philosophy, you were shunned. Teachers and classmates perpetuated the hostility. Maybe your experience was different, but I can’t remember ever having an honest discussion about communism until the early 90s.
[...] An interesting collection of images from the USSR in the 1980s. Some of the captions are rather priceless… [...]
I have friends from Russia and Lithuania and they tell me about the young peoples communist party and tell me about the air raid horns that would scream to warn the public of attack from the west, of course it was only practice, but to live in that kind of fear or should I say readiness must have been difficult for many especially the older and younger citizens of mother Russia.
Fear? It was mostly considered a distraction. Not much different from a fire drill at your work. Many of the things you had to do and see in USSR in those days were just part of everyday life, just like TV commercials are today. I grew up in the 70s and 80s, and people were afraid of the nuclear war, and they were afraid of the KGB, but we didn’t have these things on our mind day after day. It was not a prison camp like many in the West like to imagine it. The Party was the boss, and you’re careful about what you say around the boss, but most people generally thought that the boss was looking out for them.
Excellent site, everything about it shows why the US was right to challenge the corrupt, wasted Soviet government.
What? Did he invent these photos? Sounds like you are the propagandist!
There is a joke…
One old man was asked, when his life was better – during Stalin, during Hrushev or Brezgnev? He answer that it was better during Stalin. Why, Stalin was such tyran? Yes, but I was young that time…
[...] …il me parle tout bas, je vois la vie en Rusia. [...]
Wonderful photos ♥
photo 16 – was this a time exposure and someone walked in front of the camera?
The USA was a real threat and menace to Soviet Union, so every few weeks there were training alarms when people had to show their ability to hide fast and to use things like these gas masks.
America was not the enemy it was your own leaders lying to you. Which was really perpetrated by both CCCP and USA. However Russian leaders knew there would be a revolt, if the people knew how much better it could be for the country with out communism.
Nice times. I am so nostalgic.
随着我国物流业（货架）的快速发展，整个华东地区物流业托盘的发展也正以物流服务塑料托盘提升到较国内其他地区更高的地位而推进。重视具有提升区域物流托盘效率功能的专业化和标准化物流
塑料托盘基础设施建设，打造整体物仓储笼流服务平台。
南京海佩货架公司将积极推行物流仓储笼业标准化战略，建立健全仓储物流铁托盘服务标准化体系，加快推进物流
铁托盘装备设施、信息系统、经营管理、服务提供等的标准化，打造最
先进的仓储设备交易数码港，争取成为国内物流业标准化建设的典范。
近年来，我国物流业发展迅速，物流塑料托盘业增加值持续上升，已成为推动国家经济持续发展的重点产业。与此同时，物流仓储笼业面临运输和仓储钢托盘成本高昂、产业形态相互割裂等问题，亟需推行标准化战略，以降低成本，
提高效率提升服务质量，满足产业提档升级的需要。”
南京海佩货架公司是对物流钢托盘标准化比较重视的公司之一，实施标准化的速度也块。在标准体系研究中注重与很多仓储笼公司进行合作，将重点放在标准的国际通用型上。目前，海佩已经提出了包括物流
铁托盘模数体系、
集装箱的基本尺寸、物流钢托盘用语、物流仓储笼设施的设备基准、输送用包装塑料托盘的系列尺术、包装用语、钢托盘大型集装箱、
塑料托盘用箱、平托盘、仓储笼，卡车车厢内壁尺寸，
铁托盘等。
Photos are good, even though it seems that on many of them photographer were trying to show the Soviet Union in the worst possible way. I would not be surprised if it were western journalists. Comments of the author of this post are also very unfriendly and debatable. Some times it is just lie. I am not very old, but I also dream about old Soviet times. And year after year there are more and more young people, who are sorry about the USSR.
“”"The USA was a real threat and menace to Soviet Union, so every few weeks there were training alarms when people had to show their ability to hide fast and to use things like these gas masks.”"”
I’m afraid, that American nuclear weapons were no less real than all these training measures for ordinary people. And what does the author mean saying “Every few weaks”? The training hours were carried once a year in a single place. Or he means all trainings that took place in the whole hudge country?
“”"
There are almost no people on the station – that’s because people were not allowed to wander during the daytime, everybody had to work, if somebody was wandering he could be arrested.”"”
I really enjoyed this post, but I have a question? Why were people not allowed to visit other countries during their vacation?
For the same reason the North Koreans and Cubans are not allowed to go outside their countries. Their leaders want to protect their citizens from the corrupt influence of the capitalist decadence. Seriously though, Soviet Union was a dictatorship and the only way to keep the lie of communism superiority was to maintain a police state. Soviet citizens could be arrested or have their careers ruined even for having relatives abroad.
ельцин пьяный
I don’t think its drink prefabrik
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“In Soviet shops there were no variety of things.”
Yes, if you compare to that of Western and Far Eastern shops in the world. But this photo is taken during shortages occurred (I can understand the situation easy as a person, who lives in Turkey, same in 70s). Look at the actual pictures and movies of showing ex-Soviet life in big cities. You gonna see the good wearing and fashion surprisingly.
Of course, if you were a member of Communist Party or venerable family and had the permission to hard currency shops, you could buy imported goods. I had a Kazakh girl friend from a famous family, who was a teenager at the Soviet time, and she told me that she grew up with Armani and Gucci bought in Moscow, “none of Soviet goods”.
Thank you Kot for your extremely correct words!
Erkan from Istanbul, who is been in more that 52 countries past 20 years.
In Soviet time, if you are interested in a girl, you would offer a cup of ice cream, similar as having a cup of coffee .
I was emotionally attached to communism but now things are totally different. Communism gave the world a lot but it snatched everything including freedom.