Hello,
I recall that it was thoroughly studied what happened with the machinery to make the Kiev: the Zeiss plant where the Contax was made, although damaged, still had parts and tools for a limited production, during the Allied occupation.
Soon, at the arrival of the Soviets, they immediately ordered the dismantling of the plants and machinery for war reparation, with evident lack of attention: at the end, with the care of the Zeiss personnel the crates containing the Contax tools were sent to the USSR, where during the transport, they've been firstly partially damaged and at their arrival, mixed and made unfit for production.
The Soviets wanted new production lines/tools to be made at Zeiss care: this marks the birth of the "Jena Contax": actually a camera made to try the new production tools re-made by Zeiss, starting from actual pre/wartime cameras and the available spare parts.
To be more sure of the success of the operation, the soviets wanted not only the machinery, but also the necessary personnel, "volunteering" to train the Soviet workers and to supervise the quality of the production. We shouldn't forget the immense effort made by the remaining Zeiss personnel and technicians (many were taken to the West already, not speaking about casualties and those simply unable to continue their job) to re-set a production line for what was perhaps the most complicate 35mm. RF camera ever made.
The "1947" Kiev is the sound proof of this process: it was made with the new Zeiss tools, made to produce a Contax (it needs just to take a look on the reverse of the front plate, where the "Contax" name is still visible in negative and other details: they weren't wartime remains, but new parts, made with the new tools).
In those difficult months it was also unsure whether the camera's name should have been still Contax, or Volga, or Kiev... or whatever recalling the definitive place where the production should have started.
The solution to the turmoils in Ukraine, confirmed Kiev as the place where to produce the "new" camera.
Besides this historical note (still subject to update and revision though), it's clear that the first batches of Kievs were made under the direct control of the Zeiss personnel moved to Kiev. It is also known that the Soviet technicians were very well trained and specialized, the main problem stays in the "political" direction of the plant: it was requested a very high rate of production. The germans, repeatedly explained that due to the complexity of the Contax, a faster production rate was almost impossible, but they had to accept what the Party representatives wanted, at least partially, not arriving to the humanly/technically impossible rate requested at the beginning.
My 1947 Kiev, actually "is" a Contax-II of the "Jena" type, where even the chrome finish, looks alike (or it's just a little better); the Kievs from 1950 to 1955 are extremely well finished, except the leather, that's very thin and frail, not being the "Feinstes Saffianleder" of Zeiss's specifications.
I need to say that my first Kiev, a 1968-made 4A bought 4 decades ago, has an incredibly accurate finish and the leather cover is made with an extremely fine, perfectly tanned, black morocco leather; a finish I've already noticed on other 4A, made between 1968 and the early 1969.
Reading the original instruction booklets, it's clearly written that the Kiev camera was considered a highest class instrument, made for the use of professionals.
Best wishes,
Enzo (E.L.)
