Soviet commemorative coins: review and description of the most valuable

2024 Author: Sierra Becker | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-26 03:45

For more than two centuries of the history of the Russian monetary system, it was not customary to mint commemorative coins. Very rare coins dedicated to historical events - commemorative rubles for the 100th anniversary of the Patriotic War of 1812, the 300th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty, the 200th anniversary of the Gangut victory - were minted in Tsarist Russia. The Mint of the Soviet Union in 1924 put into circulation a silver ruble and fifty kopecks, the symbolism of which fits into the theme of October and reflects the ideas proclaimed by the revolution. These are the first commemorative coins of the USSR, a young socialist state.

The tradition of minting commemorative coins

The stable tradition of minting coins for anniversaries and memorable dates began in 1965, when, on the 20th anniversary of the Victory over Nazi Germany, metal rubles were issued with the image of the monument to the Liberator Soldier in Treptow Park in Berlin. Since then, a series of Soviet commemorative coins of a certain theme have been regularly minted, such as "Monuments of the Motherland", "Coins of the Great October Revolution" and others.

Technologymaking commemorative coins

Making a coin of that time is a complex process. According to the approved sketch, the master engraver sculpted a sketch from wax or clay, the size of which was five times larger than the planned size of the coin. The height of the relief details did not exceed one millimeter. From the carefully processed original, a plaster mold was removed, according to which a solid model was made. Models are now made of plastic. Previously, epoxy resin was used for these purposes. Prior to obtaining the resin and introducing it into production, the model was made by an extremely imperfect and labor-intensive galvanoplastic method.

Then, on the engraving and copying machine, the image from the model was transferred in a form reduced to the size of a future coin onto a steel billet. This was followed by engraving, turning and heat treatment of the future coin. A negative image was minted from the finished model. The result was a ready-made tool for minting coins - a stamp.

Mismatched coins are a numismatist's dream

Depending on the circulation of the coins planned for release, a different number of stamps for minting were made. The share of manual labor in their manufacture was great. Sometimes the stamps differed in detail or made a mistake in them. Such coins are especially valued by numismatists, the most expensive are coins with execution errors. Modern prices for Soviet commemorative coins of the same series differ significantly due to minor differences in engraving or edging width.

October series

To the fiftieth anniversary of the Great October Socialistrevolution in 1967, the State Bank of the USSR issued a series of commemorative coins of various denominations - 10, 15, 20, 50 kopecks and 1 ruble. This is the only series of Soviet commemorative coins in which there were coins in denominations of less than a ruble. The reason for the refusal to issue commemorative coins denominated in kopecks is the difficulty in manufacturing a high-quality small-diameter stamp.

On the ruble and a coin of fifty kopecks, the figure of Lenin is depicted against the background of a massive hammer and sickle, engraver Nikolai Filippov. On the coin of the USSR in 15 kopecks - the sculpture of V. Mukhina "Worker and Collective Farm Woman", on the 20-kopeck coin - the legendary cruiser "Aurora".

The first jubilee ruble of the series was minted with a circulation of 52,711,250 coins, of which 211,250 were collector's items - uncirculated diamond and proof like. The current price of 1 ruble "50 years of Soviet power" among numismatists depends on the quality of minting and ranges from 200 rubles. for a badly preserved mass circulation coin up to 30 thousand rubles for a well-preserved proof-like coin.

In the series of commemorative coins dedicated to the October Revolution, a portrait of V. I. Lenin was necessarily minted as one of the founders of Marxism-Leninism. Goznak issued one Soviet commemorative coin each for the 50th and 60th anniversaries, and three coins for the 70th anniversary of the memorable date.

Increase in denomination of commemorative coins

In the series of coins for the 70th anniversary of October, in addition to the traditional denomination of one ruble, coins were minted in denominationsthree and five rubles. A coin of five rubles had a diameter of 39 mm, this is the largest coin issued in the USSR. Subsequent coins were issued with a diameter of 35 mm.

On the reverse of the five-ruble coin there is a bas-relief of Lenin against the background of a stylized banner, the folds of which form the date 1917. The composition is supplemented with a commemorative inscription and a laurel branch.

On the reverse of the three-ruble coin, a complex composition symbolizing the main forces of the revolution: a peasant soldier, a worker and a sailor with rifles in their hands.

The ruble coin of this issue with the image of the cruiser "Aurora" is interesting for the elaboration of the smallest details, up to the ship's equipment, in contrast to the generalized image of the legendary cruiser on the twenty-kopeck coin of 1967.

Series "Classics of Marxism-Leninism"

For the first time in 1970, the ruble was minted for the 100th anniversary of the birth of Lenin. The author of the miniature, as well as coins in honor of Marx and Engels, issued in 1983, is the artist of the Moscow factory of Goznak V. A. Ermakov. The coin is minted with the classic type of the image of the leader of the revolution in profile.

Later, a commemorative ruble coin marked the 115th anniversary of the birth of the leader of the revolution.

Commemorative coins dedicated to Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels are unique.

On previously issued coins, all portraits were minted in profile. This makes it easier to portray and achieve the greatest resemblance to the original. It is extremely difficult to achieve similarity and convey facial expressions with only tenths, hundredths of a millimeter. The artist-engraver must have a specialfeeling of relief and metal.

High quality coinage

Since the Olympics-80, an innovation was actually introduced into domestic numismatics especially for collectors: high quality coins were put into circulation. In numismatics, such technology is denoted by the English word “proof”. In this case, the process of creating a coin is very complicated. First, the engraver must make more relief than usual, given the fact that the die plane will then be polished to a mirror finish. But even before polishing, the image is "matted" - it is processed with an abrasive powder sprayed with an air jet. After such treatment, the surface becomes silvery-matte, as if burning from the inside. Finished products should not be touched by hands: they are placed in a plastic case. In this version, the Mint has re-minted all previously issued coins since the issue of 1965, including the October series.

1980 Olympic Games Series

The Moscow Olympics was a significant political event, and in 1977-1980 Goznak issued a stunningly beautiful series of 45 coins with the symbols of the Olympic Games. The coins were of various denominations, from 1 USSR ruble to 150 rubles, made of both copper-nickel alloy and high-grade precious metals: gold, silver and platinum.

The reverse of the copper-nickel coins depicted symbols, host cities and sports facilities of the 1980 Olympics.

A series of platinum coins dedicated to the history of the Olympicgames. Stylized modern Olympic and folk sports are minted on silver commemorative coins. On the gold coins are the symbols of the Moscow Olympics and sports facilities.

These beautiful Soviet coins show the diversity of Olympic and folk sports and are an excellent monument to an interesting era in recent world history.