This month I guess I have to make up for not posting an update at the end of October. There was a reason for this, and that was due to a trip to Moscow, which went from the 31st October till the 4th November. It was my first time exploring Russia, and I will attest that the country did not disappoint. However, this is not a travel blog, but one devoted to coins, so instead I will talk about what new additions I added to my collection and other numismatic things I saw.
In the picture shown above I decided to buy a small book detailing the history of Russian coinage. A nice little piece of interest which I picked up for roughly 500 roubles (~£6) in the Kremlin gift shop of all places. Although not long, it does have a succinct run through of Russian coinage and pretty much does what it says on the front. It does not go into too much detail, but the main allure was the comprehensive photo gallery which takes up roughly two thirds of the book. Something I think that would come in very handy when trying to decipher any extremely worn Russian coins I may come across in future.
The next thing I bought was a 200th anniversary commemorative collection of 2 and 5 rouble coins which detail Russia’s victory over Napoleon in 1812. Similar to some coins produced here in the UK in 2015 to celebrate victory over Napoleon at Waterloo, Russia’s commemorative set details Napoleons invasion of Russia, his march towards Moscow, the Pyrrhic victory at Borodino, and his eventual retreat from Russia itself.
The obverse side of the coins depict the generals who fought on the side of the Russia, and monuments to commemorate the eventual victory over Napoleon.
As for other numismatic items seen in Moscow, I must admit not to witnessing much. In the Russian history museum there were a couple of cases showcasing gold coins from around the world as well as from Russia’s past. It was interesting to see them up close, and how small such coins were. And as ever, it always amuses me to see British coins on display in foreign lands. Unfortunately, photo’s were almost impossible to attain as the museum curators were ever vigilant in stopping photography.
Moscow is also home to the Bank of Russia money museum, but sadly, I did not have time to visit. Visits to the museum are by guided tour only, and have strict operating times. Most of which clashed with other plans I had during my visit to the city. So this is still on the list for when I next return to Moscow.
I also sadly did not get much chance to visit many coin sellers in the city. Partly this was due to the location of many of them being away from the areas I would be frequenting. Secondly, I read that it is difficult to transport items older than a certain age outside of Russia without the proper paperwork. I can’t say for certain that this information is correct, as I got conflicting information pertaining to it. Some places said it didn’t exist at all, whilst others placed a limit on it being items up to a 100 years old. Some even went as far to suggest that items no older than 50 years could be taken! So to save myself the trouble, I decided to settle on the commemorative coin set instead. It wasn’t too expensive coming in around 2000 roubles (~£25), which to be honest is probably roughly the same price I would have paid for something similar here in the UK. All in all, it was a fantastic trip, and I wholly recommend a visit. A re-run of which I hope to achieve next year.
Numismatic Exploits 