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Kopeck - Peter I
| Issuer | Russian Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 1703 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | KG#1708, GKH#1276, GKH2#1342 |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | ҂ЯΨГ (Translation: 1703) |
| Reverse description | The reverse bears a six-line Cyrillic inscription in bold, raised lettering, occupying the full field of the irregular flan, rendered in the ecclesiastical script characteristic of early Petrine wire kopecks. The text, distributed across the lines of the field, records the full titulature of the sovereign in the traditional Muscovite formulaic style. The lettering is compressed and occasionally runs to the flan edge, reflecting the limitations of the hand-hammered wire money technique. The flat, unbordered field shows natural die flow and surface irregularities consistent with the struck wire planchet fabric. |
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| Additional information |
Peter I's wire kopecks — hand-struck on irregular silver flans snipped from drawn wire — were an inherited medieval technology he openly despised. He introduced Western-style milled coinage beginning in 1700 precisely to replace them, yet wire kopecks continued production for years afterward to meet rural demand for small change. The 1703 pieces were struck during the grinding early phase of the Great Northern War against Sweden, when military expenditure placed enormous strain on the Treasury.
These are among the last years of the wire kopeck's production run; the type was formally discontinued in 1718.