ISU-122 soviet self-propelled gun by willage Bajna in 1945

Remains of soviet ISU-122 self-propelled guns in the south from village Bajna

In January 1945 there was a tank battle by the road linking village Bajna and Szomor. The Soviet forces tried to stop the German tank attack. Some Soviet self-propelled guns took position close to road at the skirts of the forest.
In the spring of 2000 we tried to find the remains of the fights. Among the trees we found some pieces of armored wehicles. The size of the site was 15 by 70 meters. At 10 centimeters deep we found a lot of different metal pieces. For the first look we could not identify what kind of vehicle's remains we recovered there. Later we found a fragment of the muzzle of a 122 mm calibre cannon barrel and a 65 centimeters long pin originally belonging to the track of a vehicle. We also digged out the head of a blown up 122 mm calibre cartrige case.
The Soviet forces used two types of 122 mm calibre self-propelled guns, but only the ISU-122's track had 65 cm wide links. Afterwards we scanned the site systematically. The location of the findings shows that we recovered the remains of two armoured wehicles.
The location of some characteristic pieces showed us the original position and direction of the self-propelled guns. Of course their cannons aimed at the road. Next to the first vehicle's front side we found the pieces of an armour piercing shell, and also recovered a lot of armour fragments at the left side of it. The AP shell hit its gear, and the vehicle become immobilized. At the other wehicle we found a piece of an 88 mm calibre armour pircing shell and a lot of armour fragments at its back side. We also found a characteristic item, a deformed armour plate, which is showing the traces of an internal explosion.

Now I'm trying to tell the story of the combat vehicles: In 1945 the two self-propelled guns took position at the hillside. The personnel of the vehicles stopped the engines and were waiting for command. Suddenly a german tank or an assault gun run behind the self-propelled guns. The Soviet crews were trying to start the engines because they could aim only with turning the whole vehicle to the enemy's direction.
Well, it seems that the German tank had enough time to destroy the self-propelled guns...