The most ancient coins of Rus'.

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.”

Coins in Ancient Rus' have been known since the 1st century. n. e., these were different coins, both their own minting and those imported from abroad. Since ancient times, the Slavs traded with many foreigners and therefore in Rus' one could find both Russian rubles and hryvnias, as well as German thalers and Arab dirhams. Modern historians say that money appeared in Rus' in the 14th century, but at the same time, they refute themselves when they say that the Slavs traded with foreigners even before the beginning of the new era.

The first mentions of native Russian Slavic coins are found in the chronicles of Novgorod and Kyiv, where the names kuna, nogat, rezan and hryvnia are found. Presumably 1 hryvnia kun = 20 nogatam = 25 kunam = 50 rezanam = 150 vereveritsa. Veksha (squirrel, veritsa) is the smallest monetary unit of Ancient Rus', 1/3 of a gram of silver. In Rus' the so-called "Kun system of measures, weights and money." Kuna is a silver coin (2 g of silver), the name of which comes from the skin of a marten, a popular barter product. Over time, the kuna was halved and amounted to 1/50 of a hryvnia-kuna until the beginning of the 15th century.

Trade between Rus' and Rome began at the beginning of the first millennium of the new era. On the territory of Ukraine and Belarus, treasures of silver coins with images of Roman emperors and with Latin inscriptions are often found. These are Roman denarii from the 1st–3rd centuries. n. e. Since trade among the Slavs was very developed at that time, Roman denarii were used everywhere. Roman denarii is the name of Roman silver coins from the times of the Republic and the first two centuries of the Empire, one of the most common coins in territories under Roman rule or influence. The Roman denarius corresponded to the Greek drachma, so Greek authors usually replace the denarius with the word drachma in stories about Roman history. The word drachma itself comes from the Assyrian (Russian) “darag-mana”, i.e. expensive exchange, denoting 10 grams of silver. Most likely, the Roman denarius also came from this word, because it, like the drachma, meant a silver coin and was similar in pronunciation. Therefore, to say that the names Roman denarii and Greek drachmas were foreign coins for the Slavs is at least stupid. Even eastern dirhams in the 8th-9th centuries. in Rus' - large silver coins with Arabic inscriptions, the name of which is also a distortion of the word drachma. Dirhams were minted in the Arab Caliphate, and from there Arab merchants brought them to the territory of Kievan Rus. Here the dirham received a Russian name: it was called kuna or nogata, and half of the kuna was called cut. 25 kunas made up the hryvnia of kunas. At the end of the 10th century. in the Arab Caliphate, the minting of silver dirhams was reduced and their influx into Kievan Rus weakened, and in the 11th century. stops completely.

Subsequently, Western European coins began to be imported into Rus', which were called the same as the Roman ones once were - dinars. The Russian names of the coins were transferred to these thin silver coins with primitive images of rulers - kuns or rezany.

Russian coins were widespread - zlatniks and silver coins, which were initially minted in Kyiv. Archaeologists find silver coins from the 1st-6th centuries. The coins depicted the Grand Duke of Kiev and a unique state emblem in the shape of a trident - the so-called sign of the Rurikovichs.
The inscription on the coins of Prince Vladimir (980-1015) read: “Vladimir is on the table, and this is his silver,” which means: “Vladimir is on the throne, and this is his money” (Fig. 2). For a long time in Rus' the word “silver” - “silver” was equivalent to the concept of money.

In the 13th century Cossacks from the Golden Order, Siberian Rus', or the so-called, attacked Muscovy. Great Tartary. The reason for their campaign was the disintegration of the elite of Moscow and the western Russian principalities, their dependence on their western neighbors, Poland and Lithuania, and the forced Christianization of the Rule of the glorifying Slavs who lived in Muscovy. Many capital cities of the western principalities were destroyed, trade died out. During these difficult years in Muscovy, all coins were brought from Siberia. True, there were Kyiv hryvnias, hexagonal ingots weighing about 160 g, and Novgorod ones, in the form of a long bar weighing about 200 g. In the 14th century. On the western outskirts of the Russian lands, “Prague groschen”, minted in the Czech Republic, circulated, and on the eastern outskirts, in the current Ryazan, Gorky, Vladimir regions, there were eastern dirhams - small silver coins without images, with Arabic inscriptions.

Since the 12th century, the main Russian monetary unit has appeared - the ruble, the name of which is still alive. Rubles were parts of a hryvnia or pieces of silver with notches indicating their weight. Each hryvnia was divided into four parts; the name ruble comes from the word “cut”, because a silver rod weighing a hryvnia was cut into four parts, which were called rubles. The Novgorod silver ingot began to be called a ruble, and half of a silver ingot was called a half. In the XIV century. The Principality of Moscow was one of the first to start minting under the famous Prince Dmitry Donskoy (1359-1389). On the coins of this prince we see the image of a warrior with a battle ax in his hands, next to which is the name of the prince - Dmitry. The inscription is made in Russian letters. But the other side of the coin imitates Siberian money, which was in circulation in Siberia, Great Tartary. Until now, in Central Asia, there remain the heirs of Russian Siberian coins - the tenge in Kazakhstan and the tegreg in Mongolia.

The coins of various principalities differed from each other in both weight and appearance.
On the Novgorod coins, the laconic inscription read: “Great Novagorod.” On the coins of Pskov there was an inscription: “Pskov money.” On the coins of Novgorod and Pskov we do not see princely names, since the highest power in these cities belonged to the veche. The coins of the Ryazan principality depicted a unique coat of arms of the principality, the meaning of which has not yet been revealed, and the name of the ruling prince. On Tver coins there are hunting scenes.
The main Russian silver coin of the XIV-XV centuries. became money; this word, slightly modified (money), has acquired a broader meaning in Russian.

In addition to silver coins, some large cities minted copper coins - pulas. There is a copper coin with the image of a bird and the inscription: “Moscow Poulo.” Silver and copper coins were minted from wire, which was cut into pieces of a certain weight (less than 1 g).
These pieces of wire, previously flattened, were minted with coins on which images and inscriptions were carved.

As the Russian principalities united into a single state, the diversity in the weight and appearance of Russian coins began to complicate trade. In 1534, a monetary reform was carried out in the Russian centralized state. Three monetary courts were left: Moscow, Pskov, Novgorod, where only one type of national coin was minted.

These were kopecks, money (1/2 kopeck) and half rubles (1/4 kopeck). On the kopecks there was an image of a horseman with a spear (hence the name “kopek”) and the inscription: “Tsar and Great Prince Ivan of All Rus'”, on the money there was a horseman with a saber and the inscription: “Tsar and Prince Great Ivan”, on the side there was a bird and the word "sovereign". 100 kopecks made up a ruble, 50 - a half-ruble, 10 - a hryvnia, 3 - an altyn, but all monetary units, except for a penny, money and half-ruble, were only counting concepts.

From 1534, Russian coins remained unchanged until the end of the 17th century. Only the names of the kings in the inscriptions changed.
From that time to the present day, the counting system has been preserved (100 kopecks make up a ruble) and the names of the main monetary units (our ruble, fifty kopecks - 50 kopecks, five-altyn - 15 kopecks, ten-kopeck - 10 kopecks, kopeck).

During the years of the Polish-Swedish intervention at the beginning of the 17th century. The Russian monetary system experienced a severe shock. The invaders proclaimed the Polish prince Vladislav the Russian Tsar and began minting coins of very low weight in Moscow with his name.
In Yaroslavl, the government of the Militia under the leadership of Minin and Pozharsky, in contrast to the coins of the interventionists, minted coins with the name of Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich, who died back in 1598, the last legitimate king of the Rurik dynasty.

In 1613, after the election of Mikhail Romanov to the throne, the previous monetary system was restored.

In 1654, the minting of large denominations began - rubles, half, half, half, altyns, since small coins were inconvenient for large trade payments. In Russia, a penny was first minted in 1654, under Alexei Mikhailovich, and was equal to 2 kopecks. Rubles were minted from silver, similar half-rubles were minted from copper, half-half - from silver; then the so-called efimkas with a sign appeared - Western European thalers with a stamp and the date -1655. Efimok is the Russian name for the Western European silver thaler. The name "efimok" comes from the name of the first thalers minted in the city of Joachimsthaler in Bohemia (now Jachimov in the Czech Republic) - Joachimsthaler. These coins began to be imported into Russia in large quantities starting from the 16th century and were used as raw materials for minting their own silver coins. The population was reluctant to use this unusual money; it was difficult to mint it.

Soon they began to mint copper pennies, which in appearance were no different from silver ones. By order of the government, copper pennies were equated to silver ones. This was very beneficial for the treasury and disadvantageous for the people. At that time there was a war with Poland, the people suffered from general economic ruin. Money depreciated, food became more expensive, and famine began in the country.
In 1662, a popular uprising broke out in Moscow, which went down in history as the “Copper Riot.”

The frightened government canceled the new money in 1663. The minting of silver kopecks, money and half coins resumed.
Only at the beginning of the 18th century, under Peter I, were Russian coins finally changed. From 1700-1704 They began to mint silver rubles, half-rubles (560 kopecks), half-half-rubles (25 kopecks), hryvnias (kopecks, 10 kopecks), altyns (3 kopecks), copper kopecks, polushki and half-polushki. Chervonets, 10 rubles, were minted from gold. They were minted not from wire, as in the 14th-17th centuries, but on special coin blanks - circles. In this form, the Russian monetary system existed without any significant changes until the 20th century.

In money matters and money circulation, everything is interconnected. The study of all the data of coins goes along with the study of images and inscriptions on them, with an analysis of the names of coins. Reconstruction of ancient monetary and general monetary systems and the identification of monetary reforms are impossible without analyzing monetary treasures. Let's consider a few points from the history of money and coins in Rus'.

In Rus', as elsewhere, at first livestock or animal skins, such as squirrels, sables, martens, and other “soft junk,” as furs were then called, served as money in exchange. Russian fur - warm, soft, beautiful - has attracted merchants from both the East and the West to Rus' at all times.

Rus' and cowrie shells were familiar. They were brought to us by overseas merchants who traded with Novgorod and Pskov. And then the Novgorodians themselves spread cowries throughout the Russian land right up to Siberia. In Siberia, cowrie shells were used as money until the 19th century. There the cowrie was called “snake head”...

As elsewhere, with the development of trade in Rus', the first metal money appeared. True, at first these were large silver Arab dirhams. We called them coons. Numismatists derive this word from the Latin cunas, which means forged, made of metal.

When scientists began to figure out the monetary and weight system of Ancient Rus', they encountered difficulties that at first seemed insurmountable. First of all, the variety of coin names was amazing. Kuna? Well, of course, this is marten, marten skin, which was very highly valued, especially in the East.

What is nogata? Maybe this is part of the skin, a leg, a paw of an animal? A small monetary unit - veksha, or ververitsa, was declared to be the skin of a squirrel. The juxtaposition of kuna with marten fur seemed very successful. In a number of Slavic languages, kuna also means marten. But some scientists still believed that kuns and nogat were metal money.

In ancient times, kuna was called not only a dirham, but also a Roman denarius, and denarii of other European states, and even our own Russian piece of silver. So that’s what money was called in general. At that time, love of money and love of wealth meant the same thing.

Nogata (from the Arabic “nagd” - good, choice), rezana (part of the cut kuna). 25 kunas made up the hryvnia of kunas. What is hryvnia?

In the ancient Slavic language this was the name for the neck and scruff. Then the neck decoration - a necklace - was also called the hryvnia. When coins appeared, necklaces began to be made from them. Each one cost 25 kunas. This is where it came from: hryvnia kun, hryvnia silver. Then silver bars began to be called hryvnia.

Rus' began minting its own coins from the end of the 10th century. These were coins of gold and silver. They depicted the Grand Duke of Kiev and a trident - the family sign of the Rurik princes, also the coat of arms of Kievan Rus.

Numismatists learned about these coins by examining finds in treasures of the 9th-12th centuries. This made it possible to restore the picture of money circulation in Ancient Rus'. Before that, it was believed that Rus' did not have its own money. Another thing is that gold coins and silver coins disappeared from circulation during the invasion of the Tatar-Mongols. Because at the same time trade itself died out.

At this time, cowrie shells were used for small payments, and heavy silver ingots - hryvnia - for large ones. In Kyiv, hryvnias were hexagonal, in Novgorod - in the form of bars. Their weight was about 200 grams. Novgorod hryvnias eventually became known as rubles. At the same time, half a ruble (half a ruble) appeared.

How were they made - rubles and half rubles?.. The master melted the silver in a hot oven and then poured it into molds. I poured it with a special spoon - a lyakka. One piece of silver - one casting. Therefore, the weight of rubles and half rubles was maintained quite accurately. Gradually, Novgorod rubles spread throughout all Russian principalities.

The first Moscow coins.

The first Moscow coins began to be minted under Grand Duke Dmitry Donskoy. This is how it began to be called after the victory in the Battle of Kulikovo over the Horde Khan Mamai. However, on the money of Dmitry Donskoy, along with his name and the image of a horseman with a saber and a battle ax, the name and title of Khan Tokhtamysh were minted, because Rus' still remained dependent on the Horde.

The silver coin of Dmitry Donskoy was called dengo (without a soft sign). In Tatar it means “ringing”. Denga was minted from silver wire, which was cut into pieces of equal size and weight, less than one gram. These pieces were flattened, then the minter hit the blank with a mint and, please, the coin is ready with all the necessary inscriptions and images.

Such coins looked like large fish scales. Gradually, the horseman with a saber and an ax on Moscow coins gave way to a horseman with a spear. Under Tsar Ivan the Terrible, coins began to be called kopecks after this spear.

The introduction of kopecks was preceded by the following story... The fact is that, following Dmitry Donskoy, almost all Russian princes began to mint coins - both great and appanage: Tver, Ryazan, Pron, Utlitsky, Mozhaisk. The names of local princes were written on these coins. And on the coins of Rostov the Great they wrote the names of four princes at once - Moscow and three local ones. Novgorod coins also had their own character.

Such inconsistency and diversity in appearance and weight of coins made trade difficult. Therefore, at the beginning of the 16th century, under the age of five Ivan the Terrible, they were abolished. And the penny came onto the scene - a national coin. These coins were minted at three money yards - in Moscow, Pskov and Veliky Novgorod.

Probably, at the same time the saying “a penny saves a ruble” appeared, this reflected its weight. After all, one hundred kopecks of Ivan the Terrible made up a ruble, 50 - a half, 10 - a hryvnia, 3 - an altyn... Russian coins remained like this until the end of the 17th century, until the time of Tsar Peter I.

The story of how the first Russian gold coin appeared begins in the 9th century. Novgorod Prince Oleg captures the city of Kyiv and the official history of our state begins. For the new state to fully exist, it was necessary not only to introduce various government bodies, but also its own monetary system. With the last point, things were not very good at first; payments within the country were carried out using Byzantine money made of gold and silver. In the future, this will become a determining factor for the appearance of ancient Russian coins.

By the 10th century, the need for its own currency to realize people's income had increased so much that it was decided to start issuing its own coins. The first iron money in Rus' was of only two types: gold and silver. Money made of silver was called silver coins, but what was the name of the first Russian gold coin made of gold? Zlatnik – this is what is commonly called the first Russian gold coin.

The history of Zlatnik

For the first time in modern history, a copy appears in 1796, when a Kiev soldier sold one to a collector. At that time, no one knew the name of the coin, which was passed on for years as a relic. At first it was mistaken for Byzantine gold of those times. After 19 years, it was resold to another private collection, but is then considered lost. The surviving plaster casts forced numismatists to reconsider their attitude to the history of money circulation in Rus'. Previously, it was believed that their own money was not minted in those days, and the country made do with coins brought from Byzantium, Arab and European countries.

Zlatnik bears the image of Vladimir, the ruling prince. Some numismatists agree that the coinage was produced not for the needs of the state, but to demonstrate the significance of Rus'. On the other hand, the found specimens bear traces of handling. Therefore, we can say that despite the modest circulation, Zlatnik was used for rituals or awards. To date, the existence of 11 gold coins of Vladimir is known, 10 were divided between the Russian and Ukrainian museums, and one of the Russian gold coins is probably in a private collection.

Characteristics of Zlatnik Vladimir

Presumably, the minting of Zlatnik dates back to the 10th-11th centuries. The circulation cannot be determined.
Diameter: 19 – 24 mm.
Weight: 4 – 4.4 g.
On the front part (obverse) there is an image of Christ with the Gospel and the inscription in a circle “Jesus Christ”.
In the center of the reverse is a chest-to-chest image of Prince Vladimir, in his right hand he holds a cross, and his left on his chest. On the right side of the disk there is a trident. Also on the reverse there is an inscription in Old Russian, which reads - Vladimir is on the throne.

The average weight is 4.2 grams, which became the basis for the Russian weight unit - the spool.
The emergence of their own money contributed to the strengthening of relations with Byzantium, especially in terms of trade.

The original version of the name of the coin, which became the first Russian gold coin, differs from the modern one. Previously they used the name - Kunami, Zlatom, Zolotniki.
In 1988, in honor of the 1000th anniversary of the first gold coin, the USSR issued a commemorative gold coin with a face value of 100 rubles.

The beginning of coinage in Rus', in the modern sense of the word, dates back to the end of the 10th - beginning of the 11th centuries. Silver and gold Russian coins appeared during the reign of Vladimir the Great. Before this, either dirhams brought by merchants from the East or Byzantine coins were used for mutual settlements. Natural exchange could also occur. In addition, written sources mention several payment units, about most of which researchers have not reached a consensus.

Payment units of pre-Vladimir Rus'

The most well-known means of payment during this period is the hryvnia. This name implied a massive silver ornament worn around the neck. In payment equivalent, the hryvnia was equal to a silver bar weighing 200 g and was exchanged for it.

Also in written sources such names as hryvnia kun, kun, nogata, cut, viveritsa (veksha) are mentioned. Researchers have not reached a consensus on what these words mean. The kuna is sometimes identified with the Arabic dirham, Western European denarius, or other silver coins. Sometimes it is associated with payments in fur for goods. Also correlated with the name of taxes that existed in those days and were called “marten”. But one way or another, the hryvnia kuna is the amount of 25 kunas.

Another unit of account was the nogat, which is correlated either with a separate group of Arab dirhams, or with payments in leather and furs. The hryvnia kun was divided into 20 nogat if necessary. The rezana was 1/2 kun, and one of the possible physical expressions of this payment unit could well be the scraps of Arab dirhams found in ancient Russian treasures.

The smallest denomination was called veksha or viveritsa (squirrel) and amounted to 1/6 kuna or, according to other sources, 1/100 hryvnia. It is quite possible that the ancient system of payments with fur simply left its mark in the form of names on the coins put into circulation by merchants.

The first Russian coins

The first coins that began to be minted at the court of Vladimir the Great were made of gold and silver and were called zlatnik and sererenik, respectively. On the obverse of the coin the Grand Duke of Kiev was depicted, on the reverse - a trident, the prince's coat of arms. The same coins were minted by the son of Vladimir the Great, Yaroslav the Wise, and Yaroslav’s cousin, Svyatoslav of Turov. On the obverse of the Yaroslav coins, the patron saint of the prince was depicted - Yuri the Shining.

It is interesting to note that Russian coins with portraits of Kyiv princes and a trident were unique for Europe at that time. Western European monetary units of that time were copies of Roman coins.

The coinless period and the emergence of the ruble

After the attack of the Mongol-Tatars, a period of fragmentation began. Kyiv fell, and the minting of uniform coins in Rus' ceased. Bullions of precious metals of various shapes gradually came into circulation. Among them, a single type of rectangular silver ingot with a scarred seam and “cut off” ends began to stand out, which was called the ruble. One ruble was equal to ten hryvnia kunas. The ruble was divided into smaller payment units by cutting it into pieces, which only supported its name, firmly introducing the word into everyday life.

A tenth of it was called a ten-kopeck piece. A ruble divided in half was called a poltina, and into four parts a quarter. Also, small payment units - money - were made from the ruble. Moreover, in Moscow they received 200 money from the ruble, and in Novogorod - 216.

Return of the minted coin

Russian coins began to be minted again in the second half of the 14th century. The “specific” period in Russian numismatics begins in the 1380s and is characterized by the appearance of coins minted in individual specific principalities. During this period, local monetary systems began to emerge, which later formed a single one.

For the first time, registered silver money was made in the Grand Duchy of Moscow during the reign of Prince Dmitry Ivanovich Donskoy. Russian ancient coins of the Ryazan and Nizhny Novgorod principalities date back to almost the same time. At the very beginning of the 15th century. The Principality of Tver began minting its own coins, and within 20 years Pskov and Veliky Novgorod had caught up with it. Until the end of the first half of the 15th century. Up to 50 specific rulers began to issue their own coins.

The set of coins was small: silver money and half money. Novgorod and Pskov minted money and quarter money. In some places (for example, in the Moscow and Tver principalities) there was also a copper coin of the smallest denomination - the pula.

In Moscow at the end of the 14th century, the counting system was as follows: the ruble (ingot) was divided into two half rubles, 10 hryvnias or 33 1/3 altyns. At the same time, the half-tina, the kryvennik and the altyn did not have a monetary expression; they were units of account. But denga and poludenga are minted Russian coins, and their value, in comparison with bullion, was as follows: one ruble was equal to 200 minted money or 400 poludenga. There is no data regarding the quantitative ratio of copper pool to silver coins.

Tsarist period of numismatics

From 1533 to the end of the 17th century. specific monetary systems merged, forming one, unified for the Russian state.

During the reign of Ivan the Terrible's mother, Elena Glinskaya, strict rules for minting coins were established. Silver money was produced in small and large weights. Small coins bore the image of a horseman with a sword and were called sword coins. On large silver money a horseman-spearman was depicted; they were called spear money. The modern penny originates from the latter. The smallest coin was called a half coin. It was equal to a quarter of a penny or half of money.

Before the reign of Fyodor Ivanovich, Russian coins did not bear the designation of the year of issue. This king was the first to order the date to be marked on pennies.

Old Russian coins in history and numismatics

Numismatics is an auxiliary historical discipline. Money is an important element of any society. They bear the imprint of its political, ideological structure, religious attitudes and historical processes taking place in it. In addition, money reflects many aspects of social life that have fallen out of sight of other documentary evidence of the past.

Thus, for example, the transition to a standardized monetary system of the tsarist period from the variety of coins of the XIV-XVI centuries. reflects the completion of a long process of centralization of scattered principalities.

In addition to its importance for historical science, numismatics is also a type of collecting. Peter I and his associate Alexander Menshikov are called the first coin collector in Russia.

Cost of Russian coins

There are many catalogs listing currently known Russian coins and their values. However, the price of a particular coin also depends on its safety and general condition.

For example, if the price of a silver piece of Prince Vladimir in fairly good condition can be more than 250 US dollars, then a fairly damaged coin without several fragments is worth much less. That is why the question of how much Russian ancient coins cost is most reasonable to decide in each specific case using the appropriate examination method, because we are talking about archaeological value.