Catalog
25 Roubles
| Issuer | Assignation Bank (Государственный Ассигнационный Банк) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1802 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 185 × 185 mm |
| 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 | Nearly square note with an elaborate engraved border composed of interlocking guilloche frames and ornamental corner vignettes incorporating foliate scroll motifs. The Russian Imperial double-headed eagle appears as a small central emblem above the denomination numeral '25', followed by the main obligation text in Cyrillic letterpress. The overall design is printed in black on white paper, with the denomination repeated in Cyrillic within the top and bottom cartouches and along the lateral borders. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | ДВАДЦАТЬ ПЯТЬ Объявителю сей Ассигнации платить Государственный Ассигнационный Банкъ ходячею монетою двадцать пять рублей 1802 года. Сов. пр. 6. Кассиръ |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| 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 |
The Assignation Bank's 25-rouble notes of 1802 belong to a series that had been in continuous issue since 1769, when Catherine II established the bank primarily to reduce the weight burden of copper coinage in everyday commerce. By 1802, the assignat system was already under strain — decades of uncontrolled emission had driven the paper rouble to roughly a third of its silver equivalent, a discount that would only deepen through the Napoleonic wars.
The square format is a deliberate anti-counterfeiting measure introduced under Catherine, each denomination cut to a distinct shape so illiterate users could distinguish values by feel alone.