This first section deals with coins from SIBERIA. Siberia was home to many nomadic tribes, and in the 13th century came under the occupation of the Mongols. When the Golden Horde disbanded, the Siberian Khanate was established in the 14th century. As Russia gained power, it started to expand it's influence east of the Ural Mountains by sending in traders and Cossacks into region. Eventually Russian troops set up forts and outpost further eastward. Eventually, the Siberian Khanate was toppled. By the 16th century, Russia's control extended to the Pacific coast. In the Tartar languange, 'Siber' translates roughly into 'The Sleeping Land' thus the name Siberia. During the reign of Ekaterina Romanov II, a mining colony was set up in the Altai Mountains. Due to a shortage of coins, a mint was set up Kolyvan to strike coins for the region. Coins were struck as early as 1763 up till 1781. Coins were issued in denominations of Poloushkas (1/4 Kopek), Dengas (1/2 Kopek), 1,2,5 and 10 Kopeks. All denominations excluding the Poloushka contain the regional arms bearing a crowned shield with the respective denomination written in Cyrillic supported by two sables, and 'СИБИРСКАЯ МОНЕТА/SIBERIAN MONEY' written along the rim. on the obverse. The reverse shows Ekaterina's stylised seal in the center with crown and wreath and the intials K/M for the Kolyvan mint. SIBERIA~1 Kopek 1771 SIBERIA~2 Kopek 1769 SIBERIA~5 Kopek 1767 SIBERIA~10 Kopek 1777
I started my Siberian type set with a Novodel kopek about 10 years ago and only about a couple of years ago found a nice enough example of the polushka, the denga and polushka are complete PITAs to find in nicer grades and authentic. The Siberian coins were struck in Kolyvan/Souzan, and when they were first struck it was determined through an assay that there were trace amounts of silver and gold in the copper which due to the technology not available at that remote mint could not be extracted, and was left in the coinage. As a result of the trace PMs they were made noticeably smaller than the contemporary Russian coinages. One of the Siberian 5 Kopeika coins turned up in an excavation at the Russian American settlement in Ft. Ross in California, it was a settlement of the Russian America Company from 1812-1841.
~ Dengas and Polushkas are difficult to find in any condition, but especially in high grade. If you can post these, I would love to see them. I heared that too, about there being traces of silver and gold inside the ore that was used for the Siberian coinage. However, it was a surprise when you mentioned that a Siberian coin was unearthed on American soil. Thanks for the info. ~Daniel
Thanks Traci. I still haven't found the Polushka and Denga for this series. Most of the ones I see on Ebay looked like they've been thrown under a bus, or they were fakes. Still I keep my eyes peeled. If I aquire any, I'll post them immediately. ~Daniel
I wish that coin had been found by my mother. She was there when she was a girl, and she kicked up a porcelain plate shard from that era - she turned it into to the office there - and then it was never seen again in the museum and we have often wondered what happened to it. I do have the polushka and the denga, the polushka was my last acquisition and considerably more expensive than the rest of the coins. I will also recommend a certain Russian dealer from Chicago that has the best Russian coins for finding a choice example. More to PM.
ALRIGHT!!! Now that's what I'm talking about. Those are beautiful examples 'Saor Alba'. That Polushka is probably one of the best examples I''ve seen. I have no doubt that it cost you quite a bit to purchase this gem, as they can be pricey even in lower grade. I keep my eyes out and hope I can find one in decent grade, and one that is genuine. The Denga is also of very high grade. Thanks for sharing these. ~Daniel
I found a coin similar to the ones shown above, BUT it has the name of FORT ROSS engraved on the coin below the coat of arms. The date of the coin is in to poor of shape to tell which year it was made. I looked up the name Fort Ross and found out it was a colony of Russians in Northern California from 1812 to 1841. Any more info on the coin would be a major help. Thank you (Sorry for the Giant size of the pics)
Thanks for the info. I thought I found something good. Oh well anyway it was fun trying to find out what coin it was =)
Hi 'socommer'. I've seen this coin once before. I think is supposed to be a facsimile of the 5 Kopek? coin with the name FORT ROSS marked on it. I don't know if these were used as tokens, souvenirs or what. I don't know the real story behind these, but as you said there was a Russian colony in this area. This being the case, they probably struck these as mementos from their homeland. Sorry if this is not much help. ~Daniel
Hallo, my friends. Nice coins! I was born and live now in Tomsk. It was found in 1604. During a first-half of the XVII century Tomsk was a russian outpost in Siberia. Many times Tomsk was besieged nomadic tribes (those nomades was allied north-american indian tribes). So, Tomsk in the XVII century - is like Texas in 1830. But very cold weather.
I'm reposting my orphaned Siberian coin in case anyone is interested, although it is rather inferior in condition compared to some of the above.
Hi 'Siberian Man'. I'm glad your enjoying this thread. Thanks for your interesting input about Siberia. Since I don't live in Texas, I can't say for certain, but I heard that Texas's northern panhandle can get quite frigid in the winter because of it's flat open terrain. Maybe not to the extent of Siberia's winters, but it can still get brutal. I also hear that Siberia has temperate regions along the eastern coast and on Sakhalin Island. Is this true? ~Daniel Thanks for sharing this. It's difficult to see the detailing, but I appreciate you uploading it non the less. What's the denomination and date of this piece? ~Daniel
Climat in Siberia is very cold. Last winter (2008/2009) several days temperature in Tomsk was about -57 degrees Celsium.
