Here's a head scratcher: as everyone knows from elementary chemistry courses, gold is the most inert metal in the world - it does not rust, nor corrode. Yet this is precisely what Russian commercial precious metal trading company, International Reserve Payment System, discovered on thousands of (allegedly) 999 gold coins "St George" issued by the Central Russian Bank. The serendipitous discovery occurred after various clients of the company had requested that their gold be stored ...
Full Article: Rust Discovered On Bank Of Russia Issued 999 Gold Coins - ZeroHedge.com
The Bank of Russia has released a record-heavy coin to celebrate its 150th anniversary. Georgy Luntovsky, deputy chief of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation unveiled the coin worth 50,000 rubles ($1,660) to the general public yesterday. The coin, which is said to become available on June 12th, is made of 999-carat gold.
"Originally, we intended to make a coin weighing 150 kilos in connection with our date, but later shelved the idea," the official joked ...
Full Article: Bank of Russia Releases Largest Gold Coin Worth $200,000 - Pravda
I started writing this survey of Russian numis-history just about the time the bubble burst. Russian coins and notes had been on a roll, price-wise, for getting on seven years. The rise had been built by Russian prosperity - the top end by the numismatic vanity of Russian nouveaux riches, the lower end, where I live and work, dragged along by rising middle class prosperity and investor me-tooism.
Now "they" all say the bubble has burst, Russian coins are in the dust bin of history. Not my experience. The stupid prices for good stuff have evaporated, but I am still selling just about everything I get for...
Full Article: Danes Arrested for Bringing Coins to Russia - NumisMaster
I must respond to Robert Krill's letter to the editor in the January issue of World Coin News. He asks, if the symbol on the 10th century Kiev coins is now the Ukrainian national emblem, should they not be considered the first Ukrainian coins? I have no problem with that point of view. He claimed that the contention that they are first "Russian" coins as inaccurate and propagandistic.
Propagandistic is also OK with me. People do like to propagandize. But inaccurate? Kind of fuzzy. Back then, I submit, there were no "Russians" and "Ukrainians." They were all the same people, divided and united by ephemeral and local politics and military necessity, not the mutually disdainful separate ethnic groups of today. Russians consider those coins to be their first and Kievan Rus to be their first political state.
Full Article: Early Russian Wire Money Considered Rare - NumisMaster
More old business. I was provided the answer to my question on Romanian spelling in the 1950s and '60s by Brad Vrebete and a confirmation by another. There is actually a Wikipedia article.
Briefly, yes indeed, the change in spelling of the national entity from Romania to Republica Romana to Romina back to Romana again was political. The occupying Russians thought "Romina" referenced the Slavic connection of Romania, so the spelling became part of its propaganda. It became Romana again when the nationalists took over. Write me for more of the story.
Read article: Foreign Coin Circulated in 11th, 12th Century Russia - NumisMaster
An archaeologist conducting excavations in the Kitai-gorod district of Moscow just outside the Kremlin has found an ancient treasure of rare coins, a glass bracelet, and a 12th century icon.
"The most significant finding for us was the treasure of eleven rare coins. For the first time in history the Moscow numismatists have found a solid monetary treasure. These are coins minted in Moscow dating from the times of Prince (Knyaz) Vasily Dmitrievich, the son of Dmitry Donskoy, to Vasily II [from 1371 to 1462]," Moscow’s head archaeologist Aleksandr Veksler said.
Read article: Ancient treasure found near Kremlin - RT
Russia's lowly 1-kopek coin may become a thing of the past if economists have their way, but the Bank of Russia (Russia's central bank) is still concerned the public could interpret removal of the coin the wrong way.
Russia is having the same problem as is the United States regarding production of its metal coins. Due to recent increases in the price of metals the 1-kopek coin now costs more to produce than is its face value.
Entire article: Future of Russia's 1-Kopek Coin in Question - NumisMaster
