Penny saves the ruble
1535 is the birthday of a penny. Contributed to this mother of Ivan the Terrible, Elena Glinskaya. Making a penny was a necessity rather than a natural desire. At that time, the cunning Russian people began to mock the state’s banknotes and cut off pieces from coins, there most significantly undermining the country’s economy. Therefore, it was decided to correct the situation and withdraw all the banknotes that were in circulation at that time and introduce a new penny.
Of course, the appearance of the first penny was very interesting. It would seem strange to us, since all the coins were not of the same type. Some oblong, flattened in different places, etc. But this was not due to negligence, but because of technology. At that time there were no special machines that minted coins. Therefore, almost all actions were done manually. Their size was small, about the nail. Then, they were called “scales”, as they were small, thin and oblong.
Interesting! Kopek got its name due to the fact that on all the coins a horseman with a spear was depicted.
But the first penny was not very convenient for everyday life. Too light, and they needed too much to buy things. Under the rule of Peter I, monetary reform was carried out. It lasted as much as 15 years. The reform resulted in the introduction of new copper coins. Over time, they replaced the old “scales”.
Also, under Peter I, one standard was introduced, which is still used on all coins. This is the designation of the year of publication of the coin. At that time, the number was written in letters from the Slavic alphabet. Already later, began to use the usual (Arabic) numbers.
Penny finally became copper, more silver kopecks were not released. The Russian government tried to introduce even a square penny, but this did not take root among the people. But modern collectors are ready to put any amount in order to get such charm into their collection.
During the First World War, the Russian Empire released an interesting copy of a penny. Paper. She looked more like a brand or a ticket. Apparently, the government wanted to save at that time, since the war took a lot of money.
A coin with a denomination of one penny appeared in the USSR in 1925. The shape and size were the same as before the Soviet Union. Minted from copper.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia did not have one more penny. Due to inflation, it has become simply useless. But, at the same time, in some countries of the CIS (Ukraine, Belarus) there appeared their own variants of pennies in denominations of money.
After some time, the penny returned to Russia. This was due to the denomination of the monetary system of the Russian Federation. At that time, almost all Russians were “millionaires” due to hyperinflation, but after the denomination, the number of zeros in the system was greatly diminished. And then there was a need for one penny. She returned to the turnover. Only in a changed form. Now penny made from steel. And on it is again depicted the good old horseman with a spear.
True, not everyone loves a penny in Russia. Many of the legislators and the people believe that the production of pennies in denominations per unit is more expensive than its value. Perhaps in the near future, we again part with a penny.
For the coin collector, the ancient “scales” and the first round coins are of great value. Also interesting are the paper pennies of the Russian Empire and the square coins of Peter I.
