The 2S1 Gvodzdika ('Carnation') was designed, along with the 2S3, as the first self-propelled artillery systems developed by the USSR in the Cold War, having hitherto depended almost entirely on towed artillery during the 1950s and 60s. The 2S1 featured an all-welded steel hull with the driver at the front left and the powerplant behind him, and the turret located in the rear. The entire vehicle had a clean, well-sloped design and was small enough to be air-transportable, which was also aided by having an adjustable height suspension. Main armament consisted in a 122-mm 2A31 howitzer, based on the towed D-30, which could achieve a maximum range of 15.3 km or 21.9 km using rocket-assisted projectiles and could also fire armor-piercing and chemical rounds. A power rammer was installed to allow a higher rate of fire of 5-8 rounds per minute. As with many Soviet vehicles, the 2S1 was fully amphibious and propelled with its tracks; some Warsaw Pact versions added a pair of propellers and other buoyancy aids as well. Other features included an NBC system and infra-red vision lights. The Gvodzdika entered service with the Soviet army in the early 1970 and soon became a mainstay of the Warsaw Pact's mechanized forces, being license produced in Bulgaria and Poland as well. It was also exported to most Soviet client states and has seen action in almost every major war involving Soviet-equipped forces including Afghanistan, Chechnya, Libya, Syria, and Yugoslavia. It has been used by both sides in the Russo-Ukrainian War as well.

The requirement for a new 122-mm SPG was established in 1967 in conjunction with the higher-caliber 2S3, with the first prototypes completed in 1969 and service entry in 1972. It was first observed in public in 1974 and thus given the NATO designation M1974. It was also known as the SAU-122. Despite being built in larger numbers than any other Soviet SPG, there were no major variants built, although it has been adapted into a self-propelled mortar known as the 2S34 Khosta. Foreign variants include the Polish 2S1M Goździk with a propeller-based amphibious kit and 2S1T with a TOPAZ digital fire control system. The Romanian OAPR 89 uses the 2S1's turret with the MLI-84 chassis, while the Iranian Raad-1 uses the Boragh APC chassis. The Kevlar-E is a Ukrainian prototype that has been converted into an IFV and has been used in combat. Non-SPG variants include the MTK-2 (M1979) minecleaning vehicle and RKhM chemical reconnaissance vehicle.