1 Denezhka - Nikolai I Pattern

The 1849 copper denezhka patterns were struck as part of a broader recoinage deliberation under Nikolai I, during which the Finance Ministry was actively debating whether to rationalize the existing copper series. Bitkin 951 is catalogued as a rare pattern issue — not a circulation strike — meaning this piece was produced for official examination rather than release. The distinction matters: production quantities were tiny, survivors are few, and the coin's survival typically owes more to cabinet storage than to any mint archive.