Catalog
50 Silver Roubles
| Issuer | State Bank of the Russian Empire (Государственный Кредитный Билет) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1843-1865 |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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| Obverse description | The face is dominated by a central vignette of the Imperial crowned double-headed eagle within an ornate cartouche, flanked by the numeral 50 on each side and surrounded by an intricate guilloche border. The heading ГОСУДАРСТВЕННЫЙ КРЕДИТНЫЙ БИЛЕТ (State Credit Note) is set in letterpress across the upper register, with the denomination in words and redemption text below in a flowing script typeface. Signature lines for the Управляющий (Manager), Директор (Director), and Кассир (Cashier) appear at the lower portion; the illustrated example bears a diagonal red ОБРАЗЕЦЪ (Specimen) overprint. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse carries a large central vignette of the Imperial crowned double-headed eagle without a shield, set within a plain rectangular border against a lightly tinted background. Two columns of dense Cyrillic text flanking the eagle reproduce an extract from the Imperial Manifesto on Credit Notes (ИЗВЛЕЧЕНИЕ ИЗЪ ВЫСОЧАЙШАГО МАНИФЕСТА О КРЕДИТНЫХЪ БИЛЕТАХЪ), enumerating the legal provisions governing the issuance and redemption of State Credit Notes. The overall layout is typographic and unadorned, in keeping with the austere printing style of mid-nineteenth-century Russian fiscal documents. |
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| Comments |
The Государственный Кредитный Билет series replaced the earlier assignat-style notes that had circulated since Catherine II's reign and were chronically mistrusted due to repeated over-issue and debasement. The 1843 reform, driven by Finance Minister Yegor Kankrin, pegged these new credit notes to silver rather than the discredited assignat ruble — a deliberate architectural choice to restore confidence after decades of inflationary mismanagement.
Production remained entirely domestic, at the Expedition for the Procurement of State Papers in St. Petersburg, which had operated its own secure printing facility since 1818. The long date range reflects reissue across multiple print runs rather than continuous uninterrupted production.