Vintage Sewing Basket Circa 1909

Saved and honored, these vintage sewing items reflect the world of clothing and fashion circa 1904-1909.

Imperial Russian 1909 Ruble (5)

All information taken from:

http://russian-money.blogspot.com/2010/02/imperial-russia-5-rubles.html

The Russian Empire began issuing paper currency since the late 18th century. However, most collectors of Russian currency begin their collections at one key date: 1898. The significance of this particular date is simple: In 1898, Czar Nicholas II and the State Bank recalled a large portion of the banknotes printed before the year 1898 in an effort to curb the debt of the Russian Empire and reduce the total Rubles in circulation: From November of 1897 to January of 1898, 109 million Rubles issued before 1898 were burned by the State as part of the recall. Once this decree was executed, the State Bank issued the new Ruble banknotes, starting with the 1 Ruble note of 1898 with a design different than ones previously printed.*

As a result of this decree and massive liquidation of banknotes, all Russian banknotes printed before the year 1898 instantly became rare. Banknotes printed starting from 1898 can be found for a low or moderate price, while those printed a few years before or even a few decades earlier are sold for hundreds or thousands of dollars due to their rarity. *

One of the keys needed for those interested in banknotes of the Imperial Russian period is knowledge of   the signatures of the State Bank (or Mint) "Directors." Since the dates printed on the banknotes do not represent the year those notes were printed (but instead represent the date on which a particular note and its design were first introduced into circulation), the signatures of the Directors are the only clues to a note's origin. There are four that concern collectors: Pleske, Timashev, Konshin, and Shipov.

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Each signature designates a particular era of the State Bank. A note bearing a particular signature is interpreted to have been printed in the corresponding range of years.

Each signature also has a different value. The Shipov signature, being farthest away chronologically from the recall of 1898 and the beginning of the Revolution, is the most common and least valuable. On the other hand, most banknotes with a Pleske signature or a Timashev signature are the rarest since his time in office falls closest to the 1898 recall and furthest away from the Revolution (an exception is the 1898 1 Rouble note with the longer serial, in which the rarest signature by far is the Konshin one, with Pleske being slightly rarer than Shipov).

*Each banknote printed from 1898 to 1912 also has the "Cashier" signature next to the Director's signature. Most collectors only pay attention to the Director's signature, since that one gives a clue about the date, but a small minority of collectors also collect by Cashier signature. Although the Cashier signature does not influence the date, the Cashier signature is a small variant from one banknote to another that some find interesting to collect. There are 40 different Cashier's signatures.

Denomination: 5 Rubles Year of First Issue: 1909 Governing Body: Czar Nicholas II

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The 5 Ruble note was first introduced in 1909 and was printed under the direction of Konshin and Shipov. However, this banknote, just like the 1 Ruble banknote first introduced in 1898, was also printed by the Imperial mint, the Provisional Government, and the Soviets. A recap of the distinguishing features between the notes printed by the different governments:

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First, the serial number is crucial. Imperial Russia was not the only one that printed the 5 Ruble notes using this particular design. The Provisional Government, which took over after the fall of Czar Nicholas II, used the same exact design. However, instead of using the two-letter and six-digit format for the serials of the notes, the Provisional Government cut it down to a two-letter prefix followed by two or three digits only, as seen on this site’s section about the 1917 5 Ruble note.

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Once the Soviets toppled the Provisional Government, they also used the same design for the 5 Ruble banknote for a couple of years until they were able to print their own designs. The Soviets employed the same approach as the Provisional Government, issuing Ruble notes with only the two-letter prefix followed by two or three digits. The difference between the Provisional Government notes and the Soviet counterparts becomes more specific:

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The Soviet 5 Ruble notes, which were printed between 1917 and 1918, have the serials УА-044 to УА-200 and the serials УБ-401 to УБ-510.

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Second, the signatures in the center of the banknote are crucial. As mentioned in the introductory section, the top signature on the notes, which designates the “Director,” is important in figuring out the range of years when the banknote was printed. For example, the pictured 5 Rubles above has the Konshin signature. Coupled with the fact that the note has the long serial, a collector can conclude that this note was printed between 1909 and 1912, and was produced when the mint was still under Imperial control. A 5 Ruble note produced by the Soviet Government is shown in another section of this site.

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