What is a gold coin: concept, appearance, year of issue and history of appearance

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

What is a gold coin? What is this word used to mean? What is the significance of this item? What is the history of this designation? How has the meaning changed? These, as well as a number of other, but similar questions, will be considered within the framework of the article.

General information

Recently, this designation has been used for banknotes with a face value of 10 rubles, as well as for coins of the same denomination. But not everyone can explain where this word came from and how the object looked like 100 or 300 years ago, which was designated by it. Let's flip through the pages of our own history and find out what a gold coin is, the path of its formation and development over the centuries.

Appearance

The first mention dates back to the reign of Ivan the Terrible. Then the word "Chervonets" began to displace "Ugric". So for a long time they called the golden European ducats, which fell from Hungary. Although not necessarily it was the coinage of this country. Basically, they went to pay for the labor of foreign mercenaries. What is a chervonets from an entomological point of view? Underneath itrefers to a coin made of "pure gold". But we are not talking about the color of the metal, but about its quality. In other words, this was the name of the high-grade coins.

Modern more popular analogue - red (square, girl, corner). Of the actual jewelry, one should recall the minting of gold kopecks, which took place before the Time of Troubles. But the real royal chervonets appeared during the time of Peter I. Then a major monetary reform was carried out. As a result, the appearance of the coins has completely changed. In addition, not a penny, as it was before, but a silver ruble-coin becomes the basis. It was then that the first real chervonets appeared (including double ones). They were gold coins that had no denomination. Their weight and fineness corresponded to the Dutch ducats. The difference was the presence of a portrait of Peter I.

Imperial period

Initially, at the time of the reorganization of the state by Peter the Great, when foreigners were paid with Russian gold coins, they had to pay crap. This is a certain percentage, which is associated with a weak demand for domestic money abroad. Surprisingly, at that time, even means of payment fully backed by precious metal could not fully compete with Dutch coinage. Although the created coins in all respects could claim the title of full-fledged participants in the circulation (which was practiced in the country). Chervonets without denominations were minted with short breaks until the end of the 18th century. Then there were two-, five- and ten-roublecoins. The first was characterized by a slightly larger weight, but a smaller sample. The latter was called the imperial. It was necessary to solve the problem with the lack of demand for the imperial currency.

In its own way, an adventurous and interesting decision was introduced in 1768 by Catherine II. Then secretly they began to mint exact copies of the popular Dutch ducats. Moreover, they were used not only for foreign purchases, but also when equipping Russian companies and providing the army. These coins were called lobanchiks. It is believed that this is due to the applied image. Such is the archer knight, whose helmet is pulled over his forehead. In 1849, the minting of these coins was discontinued by Holland. Although they continued to be created in the Russian Empire until 1868, until a note of protest was received by the Minister of Foreign Affairs. For another 17 years, three-ruble denomination coins were minted, which had a similar weight. This is what a gold coin is in its infancy.

Changes during the late empire

Nikolaev gold chervonets has a number of features. Formally, he was an imperial. But in fact - only 2/3. Why is that? The gold chervonets "Nikolai 2" was turned into a transitional coin in the era of Witte. The reason is simple - the Witte reform led to the fact that the content of the gold ruble "shrank" 1.5 times. What caused this situation? The fact is that the circulation of gold and silver coins was disrupted due to inflation. But for gold, this process is not relevant. There was a situation when coins from this metalwent at the market rate as a parallel currency. The main bet was made on simple paper money (credit cards). To equalize the cost of candy wrappers and gold, it was just necessary to cut the coins by one and a half times. The silver ruble did not change due to the fact that the price of the precious metal fell significantly at the end of the nineteenth century.

Soviet period

Perhaps, the most famous chervonets coin belongs to this period. After the civil war, the country's financial situation was unenviable. Therefore, it was decided to reform. As a model, they took the changes invented by Witte. It was planned to resume the circulation of hard money in the country. There was a question about designation. Ideology did not allow the use of the official royal name "imperial". Everything was moving towards being called "fed". But then they remembered the chervonets. We decided that this could be limited. And the gold content was similar to the 10-ruble coin of the time of Nicholas II. The coin until the 25th year was quite actively used on the exchanges of Harbin, Rome, Berlin, London.

How the gold coin saved the day

In the initial period of the Soviet Union, the gold coin played a big role. Due to the outbreak of inflation, the receipt of wages lost its meaning. For example, before the revolution, 20-30 rubles were enough for a family for a month, and in the fall of 1921, only one pood of potatoes cost twenty thousand. Settlement bonds have gained popularity. True, and their course is constantly changing. We should not forget that in the non-Soviet controlledthe territorial government also printed its own money. All this variety had one unifying property - gold coins were highly valued. The year of issue of Soviet coins had not yet arrived, so they paid with imperials with the image of Nicholas II. In 1922 it was decided that it was necessary to create a parallel currency using the gold standard. At the same time, they decided that the amount of pure precious metal should be equal to what was in ten rubles from the time of Nicholas II. This money was dubbed chervonets.

Implementation

It is necessary to understand that not only coins were minted, but also banknotes were issued. Their gold content was indicated on the tickets. At the same time, the exchange for precious metal was carried out freely. In 1923 (and presumably in 1924) over two million coins were minted. Also in 1925 there was another 600,000th edition, but for the most part it was melted down. From 1975 to 1982, the same coins were additionally reissued. Their number ranges from 6.6 to 7.4 million units. Coins issued during the Soviet era are also known as "The Sower" due to the image of a peasant planting seeds. The second large-scale release was timed to coincide with the 1980 Olympics. Now they are considered, as a rule, from the position that they are investment coins. Separately, it is worth mentioning one hundred thousand gold coins, which were created for collectors and are of improved quality.

How precious he is

Chervonets - how much is it in modern money? If we talk about analogues of the Dutch ducats, then they contained 3.48 grams of pure gold. Soviet chervonets contain 7.74 g of the precious metal. If you evaluate by the weight of gold, then you need to multiply the value in grams by the price. That is, Soviet chervonets cost about 20,000 rubles. But in practice, their price is a little more, something around 21-24 thousand rubles. This is if we talk about coins issued in the 70s and early 80s. Cash from the beginning of the Soviet Union is valued at about three times as much. And if we talk about royal coins, then their price is even higher, thanks to the cultural significance and the significant number of collectors who want to get their hands on them. That is, the value is formed not only because of the presence of valuable metal (although it can be sold on the basis of this alone), but also because of cultural and collector's desirability and value.

Conclusion

What is the interest of the gold pieces? What do they contain that attracts people even today? First of all, you need to understand that they are investment coins. Of course, they are also of collectible value, but it is better to consider them from the standpoint of investing your own funds. Why exactly? The fact is that since the abolition of the gold backing, the real value of this precious metal has been constantly growing. Not very fast (only twice in the last half century), but if you are interested in saving money, then this is perhaps the best option. He is not afraidtime, the amount of gold is limited, so the price will rise. But the issues of preservation and protection from those who like to encroach on someone else's property are relevant. If a few chervonets were purchased, then this can be solved on your own. And if a hundred or two coins are bought? In this case, even a disguised home safe may not be reliable enough, especially if many people know about its existence. This is dangerous and should be carefully considered. If you rent a bank cell, then almost the entire increase in value will go to conservation. Everyone is looking for answers to these questions on their own.