Russia, Empire Alexander II , Alexander III 50 Kopecks

History

50 Kopecks 1859-1885, Y# 24, Russia, Empire, Alexander II, Alexander III, Mint master mark: АБ

50 Kopecks 1859-1885, Y# 24, Russia, Empire, Alexander II, Alexander III

50 Kopecks 1859-1885, Y# 24, Russia, Empire, Alexander II, Alexander III, Mint master mark: ФБ

50 Kopecks 1859-1885, Y# 24, Russia, Empire, Alexander II, Alexander III, Mint master mark: МИ

50 Kopecks 1859-1885, Y# 24, Russia, Empire, Alexander II, Alexander III, Mint master mark: НФ

50 Kopecks 1859-1885, Y# 24, Russia, Empire, Alexander II, Alexander III, Mint master mark: НI

50 Kopecks 1859-1885, Y# 24, Russia, Empire, Alexander II, Alexander III, No mint master mark

50 Kopecks 1859-1885, Y# 24, Russia, Empire, Alexander II, Alexander III, Mint master mark: ДС

50 Kopecks 1859-1885, Y# 24, Russia, Empire, Alexander II, Alexander III, Mint master mark: АГ

50 Kopecks 1859-1885, Y# 24, Russia, Empire, Alexander II, Alexander III, Edge

Obverse. Mint master mark: АБ. Photo © RARITETUS.ru

Description

In the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries 50 Kopecks had individual names Poltina or Poltinnik.

Variations:
- 1859, reverse: bigger and smaller crown
- 1860, 1873-77, obverse: bigger and smaller eagle

This coin has been unchanged during the reigns of the following Russian Emperors:

Alexander II (1818-1881) was the Emperor of Russia from 1855 until his assassination in 1881. He was also the King of Poland and the Grand Duke of Finland. Alexander was the most successful Russian reformer since Peter the Great. His most important achievement was the emancipation of serfs in 1861, for which he became known as Alexander the Liberator. In foreign policy, Alexander sold Alaska to the United States in 1867. Among his greatest domestic challenges was an uprising in Poland in 1863, to which he responded by stripping that land of its separate Constitution and incorporating it directly into Russia.

Alexander III (1845-1894) was the penultimate Emperor of Russia, King of Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 1881 until his death in 1894. He was highly conservative and reversed some of the liberal reforms of his father, Alexander II. During Alexander's reign Russia fought no major wars, for which he was styled "The Peacemaker". More than six feet tall (about 1.9 m), he was also noted for his immense physical strength.

Obverse	Coat of arms Russian Empire Crown, jewelry Imperial Crown of Russia Symbol, amulet, talisman Double-headed eagle Displays the Lesser Coat of Arms of the Russian Empire - a two-headed eagle crowned with two imperial crowns, over which the same third crown, enlarged, with two flying ends of the ribbon of the Order of Saint Andrew. The State Eagle held a scepter and globus cruciger. On the chest of the eagle there was an escutcheon with the arms of Moscow, depicting Saint George, mounted and defeating the dragon. The Lesser Coat of Arms depicts the imperial double-headed eagle with the addition of the collar of the Order of Saint Andrew around the escutcheon of St. George, and the Arms of Astrakhan, Siberia, Georgia, Finland, Kiev-Vladimir-Novgorod, Taurica, Poland and Kazan on the wings (seen clockwise). The fine weight is written around the eagle: "Pure silver 2 zolotniks 10 ½ parts". A zolotnik was a small Russian unit of weight, equal to 0.1505 avoirdupois ounces, or 4.2658 grams. Used from the 10th to 20th centuries, its name is derived from the Russian word zoloto, meaning gold. As a unit, the zolotnik was the standard for silver manufacture, much as the troy ounce is currently used for gold and other precious metals. This unit was originally based on a coin of the same name. The zolotnik circulated in the Kievan Rus until the 11th century; it was equal in weight to the Byzantine Empire's solidus. The globus cruciger (Latin, "cross-bearing orb"), also known as the orb and cross, an orb (Latin globus) topped (Latin gerere, to wear) by a cross (Latin crux), has been a Christian symbol of authority since the Middle Ages, used on coins, in iconography, and with the sceptre as royal regalia. Order of St. Andrew was established in 1698 by Tsar Peter the Great, in honour of Saint Andrew, the first apostle of Jesus and patron saint of Russia. Mint master marks: ФБ — Fedor Blum МИ — Mikhail Ivanov АБ — Alexander Belozerov НФ — Nikolai Follendorf HI — Nikolai Iossa ДС — Dmitri Sabaneyev АГ — Appolon Grasgof ЧИСТАГО СЕРЕБРА 2 ЗОЛОТНИКА 10 ½ ДОЛЕЙ АБ
Reverse	Crown, jewelry Imperial Crown of Russia Denomination POLTINA in the center, date and the mint mark below. Wreath of laurel (victory) and oak (strength) around. Russian imperial crowns on the top. Mint mark: С.П.Б. — Saint Petersburg Mint. ПОЛТИНА 1863 С.П.Б.
Edge	Inscribed (lettered) Silver • Fineness 83 1/3 2 zolotniks • 41 7/25 parts CEP • 83 1/3 ПРОБЫ 2 ЗОЛ • 41 7/25 ДOЛ.