Russia 1725 ruble Dav-1663
The first specimen was lot 2517 in Goldberg sale 93 (Los Angeles, September 2016), where it did not sell. The catalog description[1] noted, "Russia. Mourning Rouble, 1725 (Moscow). Catherine I, 1725-1727. Bust left within unbroken legend. Reverse: Crowned double eagle. Very Rare. NGC graded VF-25." The second specimen was lot 1525 in Stack's Bowers NYINC sale (New York, January 2022), where it did not sell. The catalog description[2] noted, "Charming Circulated 'Mourning Ruble' Issue, RUSSIA. Ruble, 1725. St. Petersburg Mint. Catherine I. NGC VF-35. Unbroken Legend variety. One of the most popular types of the entire portrait Ruble series, this beauty displays lovely gunmetal gray color that combines perfectly with the even wear to give an antiquated charm. Some scattered contacts are present, but none that are excessively deep or distracting. This wholly original Ruble is free from any of the common planchet flaws that plague this series, and therefore should be in high demand, despite its circulation." Several types of ruble are listed in the SCWC for 1725 including some for Catherine I's husband and predecessor Peter the Great; collecting Russian coins is made more confusing by the plethora of competing catalog numbering systems.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 28.44 g, 0.729 fine silver.
Catalog reference: Dav-1663; KM-167; Diakov-4; Bitkin-71 (R1).
- Davenport, John S., European Crowns, 1700-1800, 2nd Ed., London: Spink & Son, 1964.
- Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- Bitkin, Vladimir, Composite Catalogue of Russian Coins, Part I (1699-1740), Kiev: Moneta, 2003.
- [1]Goldberg, Ira, Larry Goldberg, John Lavender, Yifu Che, Jason Villareal and Stephen Harvey, Goldberg Sale 93: the Pre-Long Beach Auction, Los Angeles: Goldberg Coins and Collectibles, 2016.
- [2]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The 2022 NYINC Sale: World and Ancient Coins, featuring the Mark and Lottie Salton Collection and the Pat Johnson Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2021.
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