Coins of medieval Rus'. History of Russian gold coins

Coins of medieval Rus'

During the Middle Ages, Russian lands did not know not only their own gold and silver, but even their own copper. Not a single deposit was explored until the 17th century, and serious industrial development began only in the 18th century. Until this time, all Russian coins, jewelry, and utensils were created by our craftsmen from imported metals. These metals came primarily due to the colossal influx of foreign money - in the form of trade duties and payments for wax, timber, hemp, and furs.

In the 9th-11th centuries, international trade routes of paramount importance passed through the territory of Ancient Rus'. Russian cities grew rich thanks to their own merchant enterprises, as well as taxes levied on Scandinavians, Arabs, Byzantines, and guests from Western Europe. In the vastness of Rus' there are countless treasures and burials containing foreign coins. Arab thin dirhams, Byzantine gold solidi, silver milliaris, copper follis, Western European rough denarii... Other people's money was widely used in any transactions, it was in the order of things.
But in the era of the heyday of the Old Russian state, this seemed not enough to the Kyiv rulers. Prince Vladimir the Holy, who baptized Rus' at the end of the 10th century, decided to create his own coin. It was supposed, firstly, to confirm the dominance of the ruling dynasty and, secondly, to acquaint its subjects with the symbols of a new religion for them. At the same time, as a real means of payment, local coins should have resembled in appearance the long-familiar money of neighbors that had entered into circulation.

Zlatniks and silver coins

The first Russian coins made of gold and silver - zlatniks and srebreniks - were not issued for long, only a few decades at the turn of the 10th-11th centuries. Less than three and a half hundred of them have survived, and the absolute majority are pieces of silver. They were made under the princes Vladimir the Holy, Svyatopolk the Accursed, and Yaroslav the Wise. Zlatniks were actually copied from Byzantine solidi, a coin that was widespread in circulation at that time. The situation with pieces of silver is much more complicated. Their large thin disk resembles Arab dirhams. But the images on them (with local, of course, amendments) go back to the Greek cultural tradition, which gave Christianity to Rus'. Vladimir the Saint minted his portrait on silver pieces - with a long mustache, with a scepter, a ruler's crown and a halo. On the other side is the Lord, who makes a blessing gesture with his right hand and holds the Holy Scripture in his left.

Vladimir's silver pieces were clearly made by Kyiv masters, and this work was new to them. The technique of making coins remained imperfect, and the design remained primitive. So, small legs were added to the half-length image of Prince Vladimir, and it turned into a life-size one. Probably, otherwise the subjects could have been indignant: why was half of their sovereign “cut off”? For the Byzantines, the half-length portrait of the emperor on coins was quite familiar, but in Rus' it caused misunderstanding... Subsequently, the image of God was replaced by the ancestral sign of the ruling dynasty - a trident, the appearance of which changed among Vladimir’s successors.

Slate whorls. XI-XIII centuries
Slate whorls are found in excavations of medieval Russian cities almost as often as ceramics. They were put on the tip of the spindle, preventing the thread from slipping off it. However, like many other objects (axes, shovels, jewelry), the spindle whorl began to serve as money when coins, for one reason or another, went out of use. On spindle whorls you can sometimes see scratched names of the owners or notches, possibly meaning “denomination.”

The best examples of silver pieces were made in Novgorod the Great, when Yaroslav Vladimirovich, later nicknamed the Wise, reigned there. On the side of the piece of silver there is an image of St. George, the Christian patron of Prince Yaroslav, and on the other there is a trident and a circular inscription: “Silver to Yaroslavl.” Novgorod silver coins differ from most Kyiv ones in the quality of their image and proportionality of the composition. These coins are more like jewelry - medallions and pendants were the pinnacle of ancient Russian coin art, unsurpassed: for 700 years, right up to the Peter the Great era. Modern historians write about them with admiration: “It would not be an exaggeration to recognize these as a masterpiece of coinage for all of Europe and Byzantium at the beginning of the 11th century. The stamp maker was an outstanding master...”.

Arab dirhams

These are largeThese silver coins are similar to the caps of kefir bottles - they have a thin disk. Noneimagesamenth, only inscriptions, but the quality of the coinage is such that you can easily read the namecities, gde coin was issued, and the year it was born. Dirhams have been issued throughoutmanycenturies In the IX-XI centuries. they circulated over a vast area from Central Asia toIrelandand from Norway to Egypt... Well, these coins deserve great respect: finenesssilverchanged very slowly for them. Thus, dirhams played a role exclusivelyreliableoh currency: people everywhere and everywhere trusted their “good quality”.

Several trade arteries of international importance passed through the lands of Ancient Rus'. Accordingly, the “most popular” coin of the early Middle Ages, the Arabic dirham, settled in all major Russian cities. Historians know of many treasures consisting of tens, hundreds and even thousands of dirhams. The most significant of them was found in 1973 near Polotsk, near the village of Kozyanki. It consists of 7660 dirhams of the Arab Caliphate of the 10th century. The total weight of the treasure is about 20 kilograms! Scientists believe that this is the treasury of the Principality of Polotsk, lost for some reason, perhaps stolen.

Sometimes the dirham turned out to be too large a means of payment, and then the coin was cut into pieces. Surprisingly, each part was trusted as much as the whole dirham. In Russian sources of that time, the Arab “guests” were called nogat, and their slightly “lighter” version was called kunami. The halved kuna-dirham was called with the characteristic word “rezana”.

The weight and standard of silver pieces varied widely. We see that during international trade or payments to mercenaries, coins of high standard were specially issued, i.e., with a high content of pure silver. These are the minority. The rest contain a lower percentage of silver. A lot of pieces of silver are, paradoxically, copper! This copper was only slightly “ennobled” by an insignificant silver admixture, or, as numismatists say, “traces of silver.” Copper silver pieces make up approximately 70-80% of the total, and high-grade silver pieces make up less than 5%. This is not surprising: in the absence of our own reserves of precious metals, we had to be cunning and save...
The very issue of the first Russian coins testifies to the favorable state of trade and the wealth of the Russian princes of that time. But this prosperity lasted relatively short-lived. First, the powerful flow of eastern silver that enriched Rus' dried up, then trade routes changed, and finally, the time of political fragmentation of Rus' came, ruinous for the country...

INXIV-XVIIIbbPThe oltina was issued only in the form of a bar of silver and was equal to half a rubleingot, siltand ruble. Until 1656, the half was a monetary unit of 50 kopecks, or 5 hryvnia.Hryvnia to this inTime was used as a measure of the weight of precious metals. Distinguished a large hryvniaweighing 409.32 gand a small hryvnia, weighing 204 g. Poltina, introduced by Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich,containeda high percentage of copper and after the Copper Riot of 1662 was withdrawn from circulation.

COINLESS PERIOD

Silver bar - half. Second half of the 14th century.
Western European silver coins continued to arrive in Rus'. But in the 12th century. and this “river has become shallow”: the money has “spoiled.” Now too little silver was added to them, and international trade of that time “disdained” poor-quality coins. So it did not reach the Russian lands and principalities.
A so-called coinless period was established in Rus'. It lasted throughout the 12th, 13th and most of the 14th centuries. Even during the time of Horde rule, oriental silver coins were not widely used among us. In addition, silver, without having time to accumulate, left Rus' along with other tribute, the “exit”.

Money And l and denga began to be minted in the last quarter of the 14th century. Her weight was 0.93 g. silver and corresponded to 1/200 hryvnia of silver. It is believed that the decision to mint private TV money in the Principality of Moscow was associated with the struggle of Dmitry Donskoy against the Tatars. The defeat inflicted on Dmitry Tokhtamysh, who burned Moscow in 1381, forced to place the name of this Tatar ruler on Moscow money. Need to mark, that some of the appanage princes of that time also bore the name Dmitry and minted him on his coins This makes it difficult for numismatists to determine the ownership of the item. or otherwise th money.

In addition to silver hryvnias, during the coinless period, fur money became widespread. These were leathers or skins of fur-bearing animals, most often martens. From the fur of this animal it received the name kuna - one skin exchanged for a certain amount of goods. The skins of fur-bearing animals were part of tribute and ambassadorial gifts. Until the end of the 17th century. Russian diplomats abroad preferred to pay in furs rather than in silver coins.
Double-sided icon “Michael the Archangel. John the Baptist." Moscow. XV century

The time of coins is over. The time has come for hryvnias... This is what they called bars of silver of a certain weight and shape. However, in different Russian cities - Novgorod the Great, Chernigov, Kyiv - the weight and shape of the hryvnia varied. Either they were elongated hexagons, or hexagons with flattened edges, or rods that were round in cross-section, similar to short rods.
Only in the last third of the 14th century. the coin returned to Rus'. It is difficult to more accurately determine the date when the first coinage began since the time of princes Svyatopolk and Yaroslav. The year was not marked on coins at that time, and chronicles cover the coinage of the Russian Middle Ages very poorly. According to historians of monetary circulation, the pioneers of the resumption of coinage were two principalities - Suzdal-Nizhny Novgorod under Prince Dmitry Konstantinovich (1365-1383) and Moscow under Prince Dmitry Ivanovich (1362-1389).

COINS OF APARTMENT Rus'

The entire mass of Russian silver money issued in the XIV-XV centuries is distinguished by rough workmanship and extreme diversity of appearance. Coins were produced in Moscow, Novgorod the Great and Nizhny, Pskov, Tver, Ryazan, Rostov, as well as in many small cities.
In addition to the famous rulers of the Russian land, little-known and very poor appanage princes minted their coins: Serpukhov, Mikulin, Kolomna, Dmitrov, Galician, Borovsk, Kashin...
All Russian coins of that time had a mandatory designation - who made the decision to issue them: the name of the prince or the name of the city-state (as numismatists say, the owner of the coin regalia). In all other respects, the money of different state entities of Rus' was very different from each other. This is no wonder: until the 20s. XVI century Russian lands were not united and each ruler was completely politically independent. Therefore, a variety of coats of arms, signs, and inscriptions were placed on the coins - according to the taste of the “customer” and according to the needs of current politics.
At the end of the XIV - first half of the XV century. dependence on the Horde khans was still quite noticeable and the coins of many issues bear Arabic inscriptions, including the names of the Tatar rulers. Thus, under the great Moscow princes Dmitry Ivanovich Donskoy and Vasily I Dmitrievich, the name of Khan Tokhtamysh repeatedly appeared on their coins. Subsequently, as Rus' liberated itself from Horde dependence, the illegible Arabic script gradually disappeared.
According to historian German Fedorov-Davydov, images on Russian coins of the 14th - early 16th centuries. “Still mysterious.

Here in front of us is a dragon, here is a whale-race centaur, then suddenly riders with birds appear - falconry, sometimes with a spear, sometimes with a sword, sometimes a horse’s head under its feet. Here on the coin are two people with daggers facing each other, or two people holding some kind of stick between them; we see either a man with a horse, or a chest-length image of a warrior in a helmet with a sword, or a warrior with a sword and shield. Unlimited field for the numismatist’s imagination.” The princes of the Moscow house preferred to mint a rooster, a leopard and a rider on their money, which later became the coat of arms of the Moscow state.
The coins of Novgorod the Great (minting began in 1420) and Pskov (minting began around 1425) are distinguished by the best quality and rustic beauty in the general flow of Russian silver. The first depicted two people - one in a proud pose, with a sword or staff, and the other in the pose of a humiliated supplicant, a subordinate. On the second, a portrait of the Pskov prince-hero Dovmont was minted.

"SCALES" OF THE MOSCOW STATE

In the 70s XV - 20's XVI century There is a rapid unification of Rus'. The powerful Moscow state is rising to replace the “patchwork quilt” of the times of political fragmentation of the country. It includes, one after another, previously independent principalities and lands. Accordingly, year after year the motley variety of Russian coins decreases: coin silver is unified. In the 30s The last “act” of this “play” took place in the 16th century. The Boyar Council under the supreme ruler Elena Glinskaya carried out large-scale reforms). Since then, and for 170 years, a single silver coin circulated in the Moscow state.

OLD MOSCOW POUSHKA

In the Moscow state they issued an extra-small coin - a polushka (a quarter of a penny). Even the nail on the little finger of a child exceeds it in size. She weighed negligibly little - 0.17 g, and subsequently “lost weight” to 0.12 grams! On one side of the shelf there was the word “tsar” (or “sovereign”). There was clearly not enough space for a full-fledged image of the “rider”, and on the other side, instead of a rider, a simple bird was minted. It was originally a dove, but was later replaced by a barely visible double-headed eagle.

GOLD IS IN A SECOND ROLE

Gold from the time of St. Vladimir to the beginning of the 18th century. They were almost never used for coinage, and copper, before the era of Peter the Great, gave way to silver as the main coin material. There is a unique case of a gold coin being issued in Russia, made according to European designs: this is the so-called Ugric (Hungarian) gold coin from the time of Ivan III. Its history still raises questions among researchers, and among collectors it is considered a rare coin. In addition, in the 16th and 17th centuries. gold coins were often issued, similar in every way to ordinary pennies. They were used as medals: they were awarded to soldiers who distinguished themselves during hostilities.

This Old Moscow coin is simple and unprepossessing in appearance. On one side is a horseman with a spear or sword, most likely representing a ruler. The old name “rider” stuck to him. On the other side is the name of the sovereign (“Tsar and Grand Duke Ivan of Rusin”, “Tsar and Grand Duke Boris Fedorovich”, “Tsar and Grand Duke Alexei Mikhailovich”...). Old Moscow silver is very monotonous, this has never happened before and will not happen in the future. Rare specific features of individual coins barely distinguish them from the general unity - designation by two or three letters of the year or city where they were minted: Moscow, Tver, Novgorod the Great, Pskov, Yaroslavl... In the Middle Ages in Rus', years were designated using a special number, where numbers were transmitted in letters. Under Peter I, this custom was abolished. But the year of issue was not always indicated on the silver coins of Russian sovereigns.
Nowadays, Old Moscow silver coins are called the ironic word “scales”. They really do resemble fish scales. They were made from thin silver wire, so the “scales” are not round: they are oval or teardrop-shaped. The Moscow State minted coins of exclusively small denominations and small sizes. The main unit of account was the so-called money. Two money was equal to one kopeck, and 0.5 money was equal to half a penny.
Six money was an altyn, 100 was a half 7, and 200 was a ruble.

The peculiarity of the Old Moscow monetary system was that the altyn, half, and ruble, although they were units of account, were never minted! Russian people looked at large European thaler-type coins with suspicion. And this suspicion, by the way, was justified. A simple Russian penny contained “good” high-grade silver, next to which the thaler metal could not stand any comparison. Foreign traders constantly provided low-grade thalers for melting at mints, wanting to receive the corresponding amount of Russian coins. This process required long, complex recounts and caused conflicts from time to time.
The government tried to maintain the high standard of the Old Moscow coin in every possible way, but its weight gradually decreased. Under Ivan the Terrible (1533-1584), the money weighed 0.34 g, and under Fyodor Alekseevich (1676-1682) it was already one and a half times less... Of course, the coins not only became lighter, but also decreased in size. And this created additional difficulties. It was very difficult to place all the words of the inscription on the small, uneven plate and to position the rider correctly. Often there are “scales” with a headless “rider” and half a legend: everything else did not fit on the coin. The last Old Moscow kopecks were issued under Peter I: their minting continued until 1718. It is extremely difficult to read anything on them other than a few letters of the sovereign’s name and patronymic.

The so-called silver penny of Fyodor Godunov (obverse, reverse). 1605
This coin is a silent witness to the Time of Troubles. It appeared during the interregnum of Boris Godunov (1 599-1605) and the impostor False Dmitry I (1 605-1606). The throne was supposed to pass to the son of Boris Godunov, Fedor, who died as a result of a boyar conspiracy. The coin with his name was minted for just over three months, from April 13 to July 7, 1605.

MONSTERS COMING FROM EUROPE

The government tried to correct the situation. For example, under Alexei Mikhailovich (1645-1676), the first ruble coin was issued. However, not quite under Alexei Mikhailovich, not quite ruble and not even fully released. Russia has never known a stranger coin!

The government ordered the use of European thalers to mint rubles. In Russia they were called efimki (after the name of the city of Poahimstal) or plates. Indeed, a whole handful of “scales” could fit on a large coin disc of a thaler - like seeds on a plate. So, the “original” images were knocked off the efimki, and then new ones were put on them, first of all, a portrait of the king on a horse and with a scepter in his hand. True, there was 64 kopecks worth of silver in a thaler, and the government tried to put it into circulation as a full-fledged 100-kopeck ruble. The population quickly saw through the deception, and nothing good came of this adventure. This deceptive “ruble” has survived to this day in a very small number of copies. Subsequently, the efimkas were still used, but in a much more modest and honest way. They were simply stamped: the designation of the year (1655) and the “rider” were applied, exactly as on domestic kopecks. They called such a coin “efimkom with a sign,” and it went for a fair price of 64 kopecks.

A scattering of Russian “scale” coins. XVI - early XVIII centuries.

WITNESSES OF THE COPPER RIOT

Small coins were made from copper). It was called "pulo". Pools were much less popular than silver money, and were issued in very limited quantities. The government of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, known for its adventurous projects in the financial sector, decided to give copper a radically new role. There was a difficult war with Rzeczpospoliga, the front constantly demanded money: foreign mercenaries, if their salaries were not paid, could simply disrupt another military operation. Under these conditions, a “bizarre reform” of Russian money began: instead of silver “scales,” the government organized a huge issue (issue) of copper ones - the same size and the same price. It's also pretty bad quality. The “trick” was that taxes and duties were collected from the population in silver, and copper was used for government payments. The exchange rate of copper kopecks relative to silver kopecks quickly went down. At first they gave five copper pieces for one silver piece, then ten and finally fifteen! Unrest began among the people. And then in July 1662, the Russian capital broke out in uprising. A crowd of townspeople, extremely enraged, smashes the houses of the boyars, and then heads to Kolomenskoye, the summer residence of the tsar. There was not enough security to disperse the rebels, and Alexey Mikhailovich found himself face to face with an angry Moscow. A careless word could cost him his life. Fortunately, government regiments arrived and dispersed the riot, which was later called the Copper Riot. However, the danger of new uprisings was considered so serious that the copper coin was abolished in 1663. It was collected and melted down in order, but the whole mass could not be collected, and many small witnesses of the Copper Riot have survived to this day.

Peter 1 carried out a different reform, completely replacing the old Moscow monetary system with a new one, according to the European model. For a modern person, it looks familiar, and it seems that the small kopecks from the times of Ivan the Terrible and Mikhail Fedorovich are obviously inferior to the post-reform Peter’s coins. However, we must remember something else: counting “scales” by weight, and carrying (especially transporting over long distances) was incomparably more convenient than the beautiful, but bulky copper coins of the Russian Empire...

7 Old Russian coins

Before the appearance of their own coins, Roman denarii, Arab dirhams, and Byzantine solidi were in circulation in Rus'. In addition, it was possible to pay the seller with fur. From all these things the first Russian coins arose.

Serebryanik

The first coin minted in Rus' was called a silver coin. Even before the baptism of Rus', during the reign of Prince Vladimir, it was cast from silver Arab dirhams, of which there was an acute shortage in Rus'. Moreover, there were two designs of silver coins. At first, they copied the image of the Byzantine solidi coins: on the front side there was an image of a prince sitting on a throne, and on the reverse side - Pantocrator, i.e. Jesus Christ. Soon, the silver money underwent a redesign: instead of the face of Christ, the Rurik family sign - a trident - began to be minted on the coins, and a legend was placed around the portrait of the prince: “Vladimir is on the table, and this is his silver” (“Vladimir is on the throne, and this is his money”).

Zlatnik

Along with the silver coin, Prince Vladimir minted similar gold coins - zlatniki or zolotniki. They were also made in the manner of Byzantine solidi and weighed about four grams. Despite the fact that there were very few of them in number - a little more than a dozen zlatniks have survived to this day - their name is firmly entrenched in popular sayings and proverbs: the spool is small, but it is heavy. The spool is small, but it weighs gold; the camel is large, but it carries water. Not a share in pounds, a share in spools. Trouble comes in pounds and goes away in gold.

Hryvnia

At the turn of the 9th - 10th centuries, a completely domestic monetary unit appeared in Rus' - the hryvnia. The first hryvnias were weighty ingots of silver and gold, which were more of a weight standard than money - the weight of the precious metal could be measured using them. Kyiv hryvnias weighed about 160 grams and were shaped like a hexagonal ingot, and Novgorod hryvnias were a long bar weighing about 200 grams. Moreover, hryvnias were also in use among the Tatars - in the Volga region the “Tatar hryvnia”, made in the shape of a boat, was known. The hryvnia got its name from a woman’s jewelry - a gold bracelet or hoop, which was worn on the neck - the scruff or mane.

Växa

The equivalent of the modern penny in ancient Rus' was the veksha. Sometimes she was called a squirrel or a veritetka. There is a version that, along with the silver coin, a tanned winter squirrel skin was in circulation, which was its equivalent. There are still disputes around the chronicler’s famous phrase about what the Khazars took as tribute from the glades, northerners and Vyatichi: a coin or a squirrel “from the smoke” (at home). To save up for a hryvnia, an ancient Russian person would need 150 centuries.

In Russian lands, the eastern dirham was also in circulation, which was worth a quarter of a hryvnia. It, and also the European denarius, which was also popular, was called kuna in Rus'. There is a version that the kuna was originally the skin of a marten, squirrel or fox with a princely mark. But there are other versions related to the foreign origin of the name kuna. For example, many other peoples who had the Roman denarius in circulation have a name for the coin that is consonant with the Russian kuna, for example, the English coin.

Rezana

The problem of accurate calculation in Rus' was solved in its own way. For example, they cut the skin of a marten or other fur-bearing animal, thereby adjusting a piece of fur to a particular price. Such pieces were called rezans. And since the fur skin and the Arab dirham were equivalent, the coin was also divided into parts. To this day, halves and even quarters of dirhams are found in ancient Russian treasures, because the Arab coin was too large for small trade transactions.

Nogata

Another small coin was the nogata - it was worth about a twentieth of a hryvnia. Its name is usually associated with the Estonian nahat - fur. In all likelihood, nogata was also originally the fur skin of some animal. It is noteworthy that in the presence of all kinds of small money, they tried to associate every thing with their money. In the “Tale of Igor’s Campaign,” for example, it is said that if Vsevolod were on the throne, then the price of a slave would be “at the price,” and the price for a slave would be “at a price.”

In Rus', coins have been in circulation since the 1st century, but the basis of the money supply was made up of products from other states brought by merchants and warriors. Among the many coins one could easily find thalers from German lands and dirhams from Arab countries.

The first ancient Russian coins

In the annals of Kyiv and Novgorod, for the first time there are mentions of Slavic metal money:

Coons

Nogaty

• Rezany;
• Veveritsy.

If we talk about their exchange rate, historians suggest the following relationship: hryvnia = 20 nogatam = 25 kunam = 50 rezanam. The smallest unit was a vereveritsa (veksha, squirrel), in a hryvnia there were 150 vereveritsa or a third of a gram of silver. In turn, the kuna already weighed 2 grams of silver and gave the name “kuna” to the entire monetary system of Ancient Rus'. Its name comes from the marten animal, whose fur was a widespread commodity for exchange with foreigners. This coin was in circulation until the 15th century, its purchasing power was 1/50 of a hryvnia.

The reign of Grand Duke Vladimir Svyatoslavovich (978-1015) was marked by the emergence of the first Russians coins from precious metals:

The obverse of the metal money depicted a prince seated on a throne, and the reverse depicted the face of Jesus Christ, copied from the solidi of the Byzantine Empire.

On the following coins, which were minted by Svyatopolk and Yaroslav the Wise in Novgorod, a princely bident or trident was depicted as a symbol of the power of a particular ruler. In 1019, Yaroslav the Wise stopped minting metal money.

The rarest silver coins of Mikhail (Oleg) Svyatoslavovich, who ruled in Tmutarakan, were minted in 1078. On the obverse of the coin there was an image of the Archangel Michael, and on the reverse there was a carved inscription “Lord help Michael.” The last princely silversmiths appeared in 1094, after which a coinless period began in Rus' for almost two centuries.

Coins of Rus' XII-XIV centuries

Only in the middle of the 12th century did Rus'’s own silver money appear again. They received the common name “hryvnia”, although they differed significantly in weight and shape:

• The hryvnia of the Principality of Kyiv was a diagonally elongated rhombus weighing 160 grams;

• Chernigov hryvnias weighed 196 grams, they were more symmetrical in shape, had sharp edges and edges;

• In the Volga region they paid with “hryvnia-som”, their appearance resembled a boat, and their weight was almost 200 grams;
• The Principality of Lithuania made its own hryvnias in the form of sticks with wide dents across them;
• weighed 200 grams and were made in the form of slightly elongated bars.

The first ruble appears in Rus' in the 12th century. It was made very simply: a silver rod weighing about a hryvnia was cut into 4 equal parts. This is where the name of the internal Russian currency came from, which has remained with us to this day. On each part of the ruble there were notches, by which the weight was calculated.

Around the end of the 13th century, hryvnias from Novgorod also began to be called rubles. ½ of this hryvnia was called “half”. For the first time, the names of the craftsmen who cast the ingots appeared on the coins of that time. But on half coins of the 14th-15th century they already put real stamps, letters of the prince’s name and images, which allows numismatists today to more accurately calculate the age and place of production of coins.

Unlike the ruble and hryvnia, small denomination coins were all imported:

• Drachmas;
• Guilders;
• Pfennig;
• And others, including fragments and debris.

Typically, in the west of the country, coins of the European type were in circulation, while in the east - money of the Golden Horde.

By the middle of the 14th century, the minting of silver coins with the simple name “denga” was launched in scattered Russian lands. They were made from both ingots and by re-stamping the Golden Horde coins, which were in great abundance at that time. New stamps and letters of the Greek alphabet were placed on the money, emphasizing its Slavic origin. Smaller quarter and half-denga coins were also made from silver, weighing a quarter or half of the money, respectively. Some princes minted their own copper coins, “pulas,” which were used for payments within their lands.

On the money of Novgorod there was a two-figure composition and the inscription “Veliky Novgorod”. This appearance of the coin was preserved for almost 50 years, until 1478. Money was minted in Torzhok and also in Pskov. The latter were stamped with the inscription “Denga Pskovskaya”.

A unified monetary system in Rus' was formed at the end of the 15th century. It contained two types of coins: Novgorod and Moscow. One ruble was equal to one hundred “Novgorodkas” or two hundred “Moskovkas” or four hundred “polushkas”. One hryvnia of silver weighing 204.75 grams was used to mint coins worth 2.6 rubles. In 1530, one ruble was equal to 100 kopecks, two half rubles, 10 hryvnias. For three kopecks they gave an altyn, and for a kopeck - 2 money or 4 half rubles.

If you ask yourself what the oldest coins of Rus' will be, the answer may be quite surprising. It turns out that the most ancient coins that archaeologists found where the lands of the Kyiv principality extended were Roman denarii, issued in the period from four hundred to one hundred years BC. However, it is not at all a fact that they were used for buying or selling. Most likely, metal mugs with intricate designs were much more popular as components of jewelry. This fact will not seem surprising to anyone who understands the nature of commodity relations at that time. At a time when ships and caravans of merchants followed busy trade routes, Rus' was located away from these routes. Natural exchange flourished on its lands. Only with the consolidation of settlements and the emergence of cities did the need arise to have some universal equivalent of the value of any product, facilitating most exchange transactions.

Just as a tree has its beginning in its roots, so the genealogy of the coins of Ancient Rus' can be traced back to the hryvnia. The original hryvnia can hardly be called a familiar coin. In fairy tales of different nations, we often come across the fact that the wealth of a person was measured in the number of his herds of horses. It turns out that the herd acted as a purse, and the horse from it acted as a bargaining chip. The amount of silver sufficient to purchase a horse (“purchase of a mane”) began to be called “hryvnia.” According to another version, the etymology of this word is not connected with a horse’s mane, but originates from a female neck ornament, but turned into a certain measure of weight in the form of an ingot. Over time, they began to give it a characteristic shape, which the National Bank of Ukraine likes to depict on its collection sets. After the minting of coins began, the name “hryvnia” passed to them.

Gold coins and silver coins

When did the first money appear in Rus'? Historians say the most likely period for this to happen was at the end of the tenth century. Precious metals - gold and silver - were used to make them. This led to their names “zlatniks” and “srebreniks”, but this does not mean at all that they were called that way in princely times. It was just more convenient to describe them when studying ancient coins. However, the names given later are not so far from the truth. For example, on coins dating from 980 to 1015, there is the inscription “Vladimir is on the table, and this is his silver.” Of course, the Grand Duke does not dance on the table, but this word denotes a more appropriate “throne” for him. If on one side of the coin there was a princely portrait, then on the other we can see the coat of arms of the principality, shaped like a trident or bident (later copies), or Jesus Christ (early copies). The Rurik family sign above the prince’s shoulder was not a constant, but carried changes associated with who was currently on the throne. The weight of the gold coin was slightly lighter than four and a half grams. And silver coins had a whole range of coins, where the weight varied from 1.7 to 4.68 grams. After the reign of Vladimir, gold ceased to be used for issuing coins. Silver money gained a foothold in circulation; it was accepted for payment even outside Kievan Rus, which made merchant life much easier.

The princely portrait disappears during the reign of Yaroslav the Wise, replaced by the image of St. George. So the prototype of modern penny denominations arose already in those ancient times. True, here George, as we see above, is not yet riding a horse and slaying a snake. The inscription on the reverse, the center of which is occupied by the family sign of the Rurikovichs, is also modified ("Yaroslavl silver" is in place, but "on the table" is missing, so historians say that here we are talking about the reign of Yaroslav in Novgorod).

The first known copy of “Yaroslav’s Silver” from the collection of A. I. Musin-Pushkin was discovered as a pendant on an icon in one of the Kyiv churches. However, for some reason the coins did not suit the Grand Duke, and their production gradually ceased. The last surge is characterized by the banknotes of Oleg Svyatoslavovich of 1083-1094. After this, coins cease to be a means of payment and do not participate in circulation, and the period of history corresponding to this time is called “Coinless”.

Hryvnias of Old Russian principalities

The hryvnia again becomes the means of payment, but (as we mentioned earlier) in a characteristic shape in the form of a rhombus with truncated ends. The Kyiv hryvnia weighed approximately one hundred and sixty grams. The hryvnias of other principalities were more respectable. For example, in Chernigov the hryvnia was only five grams short of two hundred, and it differed from the Kyiv one in its regular diamond shape. In the Volga region and Novgorod, flat two-hundred-gram silver bars were in use. And the Lithuanian hryvnia was a bar with notches. The hryvnia was a large monetary value. For small trade transactions, small coins were used that ended up in Rus' when they were exported by merchants from neighboring countries or Europe.

Other current coins of Ancient Rus'

This foreign trifle was sometimes called words understandable to the Russian ear: “kuna”, “veksha”, “nogata” (or “nagata”, if we consider the origin from the Arabic “naghd” - “select coin” or “naqada” - “select good coins”) . It will not be difficult for a modern person to determine the similarity in the sound of “kuna” and “marten”. Indeed, valuable marten fur was not only a commodity, but also an exchange equivalent, which was reflected in the name of money. “Veveritsy” and “vekshi” have a similar origin, derived from local names for squirrel skins (a silver veksha weighed a third of a gram). And “nogata” is a direct designation of a fur skin with legs. An interesting fact is the existence of leather money. Of course, they were not directly equivalent to gold or silver, but rather served as financial obligations. The meaning hidden in the name is “rezana”. This is the predecessor of "kuna". Rezana was produced in a way that was barbaric for numismatists. They took the dirhams of the Abbasid Caliphate and cut them into pieces. But the caliphate stopped issuing dirhams, and therefore the rezans gradually left the circulation. The need for small change was eliminated by the appearance of the kuna.

Rezana is symbolically combined with the ruble, which was “cut” from the silver hryvnia. The ruble was a large monetary unit, so it had to be cut into halves, which received the name “poltina”. The name "hryvnia" is gradually leaving the language, being replaced by the word "ruble". Of course, later the concept of “kopeck piece” is destined to arise, but this will already be just a component of the ruble. But the kopecks we are familiar with appeared much later, already in the Middle Ages, so there is no reason to classify them as coins of Ancient Rus'.

We can see one of Vladimir’s zlatniks on the reverse of the commemorative coin of the USSR State Bank of 1988. The golden hundred-ruble note is dedicated to the thousandth anniversary of ancient Russian coinage. It is worth recalling here that in 1988, practically at the state level, the millennium of the baptism of Rus' was celebrated. Festive events took place in the main cities of the USSR (Leningrad and Moscow), as well as in the ancient princely capitals (for example, Kyiv and Vladimir). After June 18, all dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church joined the celebrations. In this regard, the State Bank of the USSR issues an expanded series of coins, where Epiphany was not always directly mentioned, but historical monuments of that time were reflected (“1000 years of Russian literature” or “1000 years of Russian architecture”). For the silver coin, a three-ruble denomination was set aside, minted on 900-carat silver.

How many original coins of Kievan Rus have survived? Quite a bit. Thus, there are only eleven coins of gold coins belonging to Prince Vladimir, and two and a half hundred coins of silver coins. The number of known silver pieces of Prince Svyatopolk does not exceed fifty. But the fewest coins that have survived to our times are those of Yaroslav the Wise - seven copies. It is clear that they, together with the gold coins of Prince Vladimir, are the rarest coins of Ancient Rus'. For those who are interested in the topic and want to study it in detail, we highly recommend the book “The Russian Monetary System” by Ivan Georgievich Spassky. It fully and reliably describes the monetary circulation of Ancient Rus'.

Money made from yellow precious metal appeared in Rus' more than a thousand years ago. The first coins of “our own production”, minted from gold, appeared in our country in the 10-11th century, during the time of Prince Vladimir, known to us as “Red Sun”. All coins of this period show the influence of Byzantine art. On the front side, the Grand Duke was usually depicted with a trident (this was the “crown” symbol of the Kyiv princes); on the reverse side there was an image of Christ the Savior with the Gospel in his hand.

Zlotnik of Prince Vladimir.

In those days, there was a heyday of Kievan Rus, and it is clear that in order to raise prestige among the people and neighboring states, gold coins were minted. But then came a difficult period - the Tatar invasion, civil strife, unrest. All this naturally led to the fact that the treasury of even the richest princes was empty. Accordingly, until the end of the 15th century, gold coins were not minted in Rus'.

The production of own coins by re-minting (mainly from Hungarian) began under the Moscow Grand Dukes Mikhail Fedorovich and Ivan III Vasilyevich. Interestingly, most often these coins were not in use, but were issued as a reward for military merit.

Mikhail Fedorovich. Committed gold in three quarters of Ugric.

The tradition of minting gold kopecks and chervonets continued under the tsars. On the coins of Ivan IV Vasilyevich the Terrible, a double-headed eagle was placed on both sides of the coin. The son of Ivan IV, Fyodor Ivanovich, placed an inscription with his title on one side of the coins, and a double-headed eagle or horseman on the other.

Fyodor Alekseevich (1676-1682). Gold award worth two Ugric. Remake.

Similar types of coins were minted by False Dmitry, Vasily Shuisky, and Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov. Alexey Mikhailovich minted a double chervonets with his belt image.

Pre-reform coins of Peter I, Ivan and Sophia had both images of co-rulers and simply double-headed eagles on both sides.

Ivan, Peter, Sophia. Gold reward of one Ugric for the Crimean campaign of 1687.

Under Peter I everything changed. Gold coins came into use as they began to be minted on an industrial scale. Thus, they were minted according to a strict pattern, and their denomination under Peter I was unusual. Since 1701, the first Russian emperor ordered the minting of 1 ducat and 2 ducats.

The fact is that initially a large number of these coins were minted from Western gold ducats. The weight of 1 ducat varied, but, as a rule, was 6-7 grams. The difference between them and modern money was that the denomination was not indicated on the coin. But the Russian people found a more familiar name for such “ducats” and began to call one ducat a chervonets, and two ducats a double chervonets.

Dukat of Peter I.

Since 1718, Peter I issued 2 gold rubles. During her reign, his wife Catherine I also issued only two-ruble coins in gold. By the way, the circulation was limited and reached about 9 thousand copies. Therefore, today you can get from 90 to 900 thousand rubles for a two-ruble coin of Catherine I Alekseevna.

Two rubles in gold. Ekaterina Alekseevna.

During the reign of Peter II, gold coins were minted without denomination, but out of habit they were called chervonets. The same thing happened under Anna Ioannovna. Today, money with a portrait of this autocrat can fetch from 35 thousand to 2 million rubles (depending on the year and the image on the coin).

Chervonets of Anna Ioannovna. 1730

During the short reign of the infant John IV, gold coins were not minted: they simply, probably, did not have time for several months.

Further, when Elizaveta Petrovna came to power, the production of gold money finally revived. In addition to the standard chervonets with a portrait of the empress, a double chervonets was issued. There were also half a ruble, 1 ruble, 2 rubles. Then, in 1755, imperial (10 rubles) and semi-imperial (5 rubles) were added to these coins. On the new coins, instead of a double-headed eagle on the reverse, there is a cross of four patterned shields connected by a fifth. On the first four there are coats of arms and symbols of the cities of the Russian Empire, and in the central shield there is a double-headed eagle with a scepter and an orb. Imperials were most often used for foreign trade operations.

Imperial of Elizabeth Petrovna. 1756

Among this abundance, Peter III left only the familiar chervonets, as well as imperial and semi-imperial. After the story of the overthrow of her husband, Catherine II ordered that all coins with the portrait of Peter III be re-minted into coins of the same denomination, but with her name and portrait. Therefore, coins from the time of Peter III are very rare and highly valued. There is evidence that at auctions they go for amounts starting from several tens of thousands of dollars.

Paul I, the son of Catherine II, began a new tradition. Money was now minted without a portrait of the emperor. He left an imperial, a half-imperial and a gold piece. They looked unusual.

Chervonets Pavel. 1797

Under Alexander I the tradition continued. Among the “golden” only imperial (10 rubles) and semi-imperial (5 rubles) remained. After the victory over Napoleon in 1813, Poland became part of Russia. In this regard, in 1816, Alexander I began minting coins (for Poland) at the Warsaw Mint. Of gold there were 50 and 25 zlotys.

50 zlotys with a portrait of Alexander I. 1818

Nicholas I left the imperials, but became famous for the fact that he began minting coins... from platinum! These were the world's first platinum coins issued for everyday circulation. They were issued in denominations of 3, 6 and 12 rubles. At that time, by the way, platinum was not considered expensive and was 2.5 times cheaper than gold. It had just been discovered in 1819, its extraction was very cheap. In this regard, the government, fearing mass counterfeits, removed platinum coins from circulation. And more money was never minted from platinum in Russia. And all the scrap coins - 32 tons - were sold to England. And this country has long been a monopolist for this metal. Today, at auctions, platinum coins of Nicholas I can be sold for 3-5 million rubles.

Platinum 6 rubles of Nicholas I. 1831

Let's return to gold. The successor of Nicholas I, Alexander II, the most democratic tsar and liberator of the peasantry, minted only half-imperial coins and also introduced 3 rubles in gold. There were reforms in the country; no special money was provided for the minting of gold. Apparently, this is why the denominations have decreased.

3 rubles in gold. Alexander II. 1877

Alexander III left the coins of the same denomination, but returned the imperial - 10 rubles. And he ordered his portrait to be minted on it. Thus, the tradition of portrait chervonets was resumed. The technical characteristics of the gold coin change - it becomes thicker, but has a smaller diameter. Gold coins of Alexander III are sold at auctions for amounts of 7-20 thousand dollars.

Imperial of Alexander III. 1894

Then we are left with only the golden times of the infamous last Tsar Nicholas II. Coins of 5 and 10 rubles are still brought to buyers of antiquities by old women who have preserved them somewhere unknown. And the search engines dream of seeing the golden shine of this particular royal profile in the newly dug hole.

Golden chervonets of Nicholas II.

The weight of a gold coin with a face value of 10 rubles before Nicholas 2 was 12.9 grams. After the Nikolaev monetary reform, the weight of a gold coin with a face value of 10 rubles was reduced by one and a half times and amounted to 8.6 grams. Therefore, gold coins became more accessible and their circulation increased.

In the new lightweight “Nikolaev” weight, gold 15 rubles and 7 rubles 50 kopecks were minted. At the same time, their cost is low, just like the cost of “Nikolaev” chervonets - about 20 thousand rubles. But they are found more often than all other coins combined, and the chance of finding them in a mine is also higher.

There are also “gift” coins from the time of Nicholas II. These coins were minted for the personal gift fund of Nicholas 2. The dates of their minting suggest that 25 rubles of 1896 were minted specifically for the coronation, and 25 rubles of 1908 for the 40th anniversary of Nicholas 2. The price of such gold coins reaches 120-150 thousand dollars.

Following the donated (gift) coins, we can highlight a completely unusual, unparalleled gold coin with a face value of 37 rubles 50 kopecks - 100 francs in 1902. According to some assumptions, in this way Nicholas 2 wanted to commemorate the Franco-Russian union, but other part of numismatists are more inclined to believe that 37 rubles 50 kopecks - 100 francs were intended for use in the casino system. At a price like this, a “gold” one can be found at auctions today for 40-120 thousand dollars.

The story of the last golden royal chervonets deserves a separate story.

You will learn about it in the next article.