Russia - Romanov 1917 15 Kopek

September 2026

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Last year of the Romanovs under Nicholas II and the first of the Bolshevik Revolution - 1917. Very scarce date! St. Petersburg mint (14.32 million minted, where are they now?) - by Victor Smirnov.
Due to economic and political disruption by 1915 the minting of small silver coins at the Petrograd mint became difficult. Inflation and hoarding made it impossible to keep up with demand. The USA was approached for minting assistance, but Woodrow Wilson disliked the imperial regime and declined to help. The Russians turned to Japan who agreed to do the work at the Osaka mint. Russian agents purchased silver from the Chinese and shipped it to Japan. While tens of millions of 10 & 15 Kopek coins were struck, most of them never reached Moscow or Petrograd, and were held in the Far East at Vladivostok. It appears that most were either melted or transferred to bullion dealers, which might explain why so many of them ended up in America and Europe while they were scarce in Russia. By 1916 production had stopped but there was a very limited issue in 1917 for payments to special areas (Petrograd, St. Petersburg mint), and these 1917 issues were never actively circulated. By August 1917 even this limited production was halted and they became the last coins issued in the name of Imperial Russia.
I've been trying to acquire the 1917 20 Kopeck for some time now - I can say that they are far rarer than the 10 & 15 Kopeck. Contact me for a generous offer on a nice example. For a great review of Russian coins from Rus through the Revolution in the Library at:
Russian Coins - 1000 Years: Please contact me for emailed (see Home page) attachment.