Находки монет России XVI-XVII на территории Беларуси
ENIn 16th - 17th centuries, the monetary system of Belarus, which rep resented economically and politically most significant part of Grand Duchy of Lithuania, developed in context of general European trends. The coins minted in Vilnius, Poland and West European states circulated there. Although the written documents often mention regular and intensive trade contacts of Grand Duchy of Lithuania (after 1569 Polish-Lithuanian Union) with Russian state, findings of Russian coins are sporadic in Belarus. Reason of contradiction of two groups of equally reliable information sources, the written and numismatic, lays first of all in the hopeless backwardness of the Russian monetary system. The basic money denomination in Russia was the silver “w ireshaped” kopek, their fractions - half-kopek (denga) and quarter-kopek (polushka) were m inted in a limited extent only. Raw material used for minting kopecks were the west European thallers, from which the ligature was removed until 1626 so that they reached the probe even of 960/1000. Since 1626 the purification o f raw material was abandoned and the kopekas began to be minted from non-purified thaller silver o f the probe of 960/1000-874/1000. Weight of kopecks also con tin u ously declined: from 1533 - 0.50-0.48 g, in 1626 - 0.47-0.46 g, in 1645 - 0.46-0.45 g and from 1698 only 0.28 g Very small (in average 14 x 7 mm), though high-quality kopeks o f irregular oval shape were inconvenient for counting and m an ip u lation. The kopeck was a too valuable monetary unit in comparison with the small billon change coins (from solidus to one-and half groschen), but from the viewpoint of metrological parameters too small in comparison with the full-value coins (from the three-groschen coins to thaller). Just these circumstances caused the factual boycott of the Russian coins on the Byelorussian markets.However the Russian coins being unpopular in circulation, were always a valuable and much-searched for raw material for manufacturing of jewels. There are not any reliable data about hoards deposed in Belarus in 16th century, which w ould have contained Russian coins. The “M oscow money” is mentioned in written documents only four times - in the years 1532, 1533, 1537 and 1565. In 17th century the situation changed essentially. We know hoards containing a small p o rtio n o f Russian kopeks. Their o c cu rrence give evidence of a small share of kopeks in money circulation in Byelorussia. A special category of the hoards deposed in Belarus in 17th century is represented by hoards, sometimes considerably rich (more than 1,000 coins), consisting exclusively of kopek. These hoards were doubtless deposed in the period of wars between Polish-Lithuania Union and Russia (1610-1612, 1632-1634, 1654-1667). The coins im p orted from Russia, but not used by their unfortunate owners did not become a document of money circulation in Belarus, but a witness of „extraordinary“ circumstances.
