Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
2 Kopecks - Military Trade Cheque
| Issuer | Vneshtorgbank (Внешпосылторг) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1976 |
| Type | Vouchers |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Light orange and red-brown with blue guilloche underprint; red-brown border strips at top and bottom carry the Cyrillic legend «специальный. для военной торговли». At left, a circular vignette with the Внешпосылторг monogram logo; denomination «ДВЕ КОПЕЙКИ» in large green lettering at centre, with year 1976 at foot. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Plain pink underprint with a central dark green lathe-work guilloche rosette of concentric scalloped bands. A horizontal green cartouche at centre bears the inscription «ЧЕК ПЕРЕПРОДАЖЕ НЕ ПОДЛЕЖИТ». The overall design is intentionally simple, relying on the guilloche pattern as the primary security element. |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
Vneshtorgbank's military trade cheques — commonly called "voennie cheki" — were issued through Vneshtorgbank's retail subsidiary Vneshtorgsylka to Soviet military personnel serving abroad, primarily in Warsaw Pact countries and Soviet-aligned states in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. Hard currency was forbidden to ordinary servicemen, so these cheques functioned as a controlled substitute, redeemable only at closed Voenirtorg military stores inaccessible to the local population. The system kept foreign exchange out of soldiers' hands while still giving them purchasing power.
The 1976 series replaced an earlier military cheque system with tighter denomination controls. Low-value fractional cheques like this 2-kopeck piece exist because store prices were set to the kopeck — change had to be made somehow.