1 Rouble A.S. Pushkin

Issued to mark the bicentenary of Pushkin's birth, this coin appeared during one of Russia's worst post-Soviet financial crises — the ruble had collapsed in August 1998, wiping out savings and destabilizing the banking system. The Bank of Russia nonetheless proceeded with the commemorative program, a decision that says something about the political importance of Pushkin as a cultural touchstone in official Russian identity.

Nickel silver was the workhorse alloy of Russian commemoratives in this period precisely because bimetallic and precious-metal budgets were under severe pressure.