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5 Roubles St. Sophia Cathedral
| Issuer | State Bank of the USSR |
|---|---|
| Year | 1988 |
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| Shape | Round |
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|---|---|
| Obverse script | Cyrillic |
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| Reverse description | A detailed architectural view of the Saint Sophia Cathedral complex in Kyiv is depicted in the central field, showing the cathedral's multiple golden onion domes crowned with Orthodox crosses, with the prominent bell tower to the left and surrounding trees rendered in fine relief along the lower portion. The curved Cyrillic legend 'СОФИЙСКИЙ СОБОР' (St. Sophia Cathedral) arcs along the upper periphery, while the inscription 'XI ВЕК' (11th century) appears to the right of the composition in the mid-field. The placename 'КИЕВ' (Kyiv) is inscribed along the lower border. The architectural rendering conveys the grandeur of this UNESCO World Heritage monument against a polished background field. |
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Issued as part of the USSR's "Outstanding Monuments of Architecture" commemorative series, this piece appeared during Gorbachev's glasnost period, when Soviet cultural policy was quietly rehabilitating pre-revolutionary religious heritage as a source of national pride rather than ideological embarrassment. The Cathedral of St. Sophia in Novgorod — founded in 1045 by Yaroslav the Wise — predates the Mongol invasion and is among the oldest surviving stone structures in Russia.
Copper-nickel commemoratives from this series circulated only nominally; most were diverted into the growing Soviet collector market or sold through Vneshposyltorg for hard currency.