Numismatique Grasse coin page, by Maison Or & Bijoux Mougins · reviewed
| Country | Russia |
|---|---|
| Metal | Gold 900/1000 |
| Weight | 10 roubles: 8.60 g (7.74 g of fine gold); 7.50 roubles: 6.45 g (5.81 g of fine gold) |
| Diameter | 10 roubles: 22.5 mm; 7.50 roubles: 21.3 mm |
| Years struck | 10 roubles: 1898 to 1911; 7.50 roubles: 1897 only |
| Mint | St Petersburg, with no mint letter |
| Coins of the same series | 15 roubles 1897 (12.90 g); 5 roubles 1897-1911 (4.30 g) |
The 10 roubles of Nicholas II is the Russian gold coin most often found in French families, alongside napoléons. Its little sister of 1897, the 7.50 roubles, weighs exactly the same as a 20 francs. Everything comes down to one Cyrillic inscription and the edge.
Portrait of Nicholas II, bareheaded, facing left, with a short beard. Around it runs his abbreviated title in pre-reform Cyrillic, ‘НИКОЛАЙ II ИМПЕРАТОРЪ И САМОДЕРЖЕЦЪ ВСЕРОСС’ preceded by the letters Б and М, which translates as ‘By the grace of God, Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias’.
Crowned double-headed eagle, with regional shields on its wings. Below, the denomination and the year spelt out, followed by ‘Г.’ (year): ‘10 РУБЛЕЙ 1899 Г.’, or ‘7 РУБЛЕЙ 50 КОПѢЕКЪ 1897 Г.’ on the 1897 coin.
First find the year on the reverse, then the two letters at the end of the edge inscription. The years 1899 to 1904 account for most surviving coins. By contrast, 1898, the first year of the 10 roubles, and the last three, 1909 to 1911, were struck in small numbers.
| Date | Denomination | Initials | Mintage | Key point |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1897 | 7 roubles 50 kopecks | АГ | 16,829,000 | Single year, weight of a 20 francs. |
| 1897 | 15 roubles | АГ | 11,900,033 | Single year, weight of a 40 francs. |
| 1897 | 5 roubles | АГ | 5,372,000 | First date of the small coin. |
| 1898 | 10 roubles | АГ | 200,000 | First year of the 10 roubles. |
| 1899 | 10 roubles | АГ, ФЗ, ЭБ | 27,600,000 (all masters) | The most plentiful date. |
| 1900-1901 | 10 roubles | ФЗ, АР | unknown | Common; two masters in succession. |
| 1902-1904 | 10 roubles | АР | unknown | Common. |
| 1906 | 10 roubles | АР | 10 | Proof striking, a museum piece. |
| 1909 | 10 roubles | ЭБ | 50,000 | Low mintage. |
| 1910 | 10 roubles | ЭБ | 100,000 | Low mintage. |
| 1911 | 10 roubles | ЭБ | 50,000 | Last gold striking of the reign; date also reused later (see below). |
| 1898-1911 | 5 roubles | depends on year | unknown | Many combinations, not detailed here. |
Mintages from CGB for the 1897 coins, CoinVarieties for the 10 roubles and Updown for 1906, taken from the numismatique-strasbourg site’s page, which cites these sources. For 1899, CGB gives 23,900,013 coins, probably for the АГ initials alone.
The four gold coins of the reform share the same portrait and the same eagle. The only reliable way to tell them apart is to read the line beneath the eagle. You do not need to know Cyrillic: just pick out the figures and one word.
The dimensions confirm the reading. Lay the coin on a gold 20 francs: a 7.50 roubles covers it almost exactly, a 10 roubles overlaps by just under a millimetre on each side. On an accurate kitchen scale, allow 8.60 g for the 10 roubles and 6.45 g for the 7.50. A difference of more than a few hundredths of a gram on a coin with little wear should put you on your guard.
To tie the rouble to gold, Finance Minister Sergei Witte had a simple rule adopted in January 1897: the new rouble would represent only two thirds of the old gold rouble, i.e. 0.774 g of fine gold. The coins in circulation, the imperial and half imperial, kept their weight and design. They were simply given a new denomination: 15 roubles and 7 roubles 50 kopecks.
These awkward figures did not last. By the end of 1897 a 5 roubles had been introduced, and a decree of December 1898 created the 10 roubles with 7.74 g of fine gold. That is why the 7.50 and 15 roubles carry only one date, whereas the 10 roubles begins in 1898.
The St Petersburg Mint then struck very large quantities until 1904, and far fewer afterwards. Gold striking ended in 1911. With the war of 1914, the rouble could no longer be exchanged for gold, and the coins left purses for safes.
Turn the coin slowly under a lamp. The edge inscription ends with two Cyrillic letters, the initials of the mint master in office that year. They must match the date:
A year paired with initials that never appeared on it is a sign of forgery. On coins mounted as jewellery the edge has often suffered: soldering, filing, a removed loop. If the initials are gone, the date on the reverse is still legible, but the coin loses part of its interest for a collector.
To judge condition, look at the Tsar’s beard and the lock above his ear, then the feathers and small shields of the eagle. These are the first areas of relief to flatten. Gold is never cleaned; our French guide to toning and stains explains why.
The 1897 imperial. A coin marked 10 roubles and dated 1897 that weighs 12.90 g does not belong to the reform: it is an imperial of the old system, struck in very small numbers. Do not confuse it with the 15 roubles, which has the same weight.
Soviet strikes. Auction catalogues report 10 roubles struck in 1925 and 1926 with old dies, notably dated 1911. They are very hard to tell from the originals, and sources remain scarce.
The sower chervonets. This Soviet 10 roubles shows a peasant sowing grain, not a portrait: impossible to mistake once you look at the obverse.
Imitations. The 10 roubles has been widely copied. Be wary of soft relief, a grainy field, blurred letters or an irregular edge inscription. A correct weight alone is not reassuring: check the diameter too.
The other foreign gold coins found in estates are grouped in our French sections on gold coins and foreign coins.
Nicholas II, whose portrait appears on these coins, left a lasting mark on the Riviera: he authorised and funded the St Nicholas Orthodox Cathedral in Nice, built from 1903 for the Russian community settled there since the late 19th century, and consecrated on 18 December 1912. Nothing suggests these families paid in gold roubles in the Grasse area. But Russian coins do turn up in estates in the region, often kept together with 20 francs.
No. That word appears only on the 7 roubles 50 kopecks of 1897. It weighs 6.45 g, like a 20 francs, and contains 5.81 g of fine gold.
On the reverse, in figures, just after the word РУБЛЕЙ and before the letter Г. The edge does not give the year, only the fine gold content and the mint master’s initials.
1898, then 1909, 1910 and 1911, between 50,000 and 200,000 pieces. The 1906, struck as a proof in about ten pieces, is out of reach of ordinary estates.
Yes. A free assessment lets the weight, diameter, date and initials be checked in front of you.