Old Russian money: when it appeared, and what happened before. Monetary units of ancient Rus' The monetary unit of the Slavs was called

Monetary units of Ancient Rus'

Money as a means of exchange was known in the territory of the Eastern Slavs long before the emergence of the Old Russian state. Of course, these were not the usual coins or paper money. Natural products, such as livestock or valuable furs of fur-bearing animals, were used as monetary units in Ancient Rus'.
At the initial stage of the formation of Ancient Rus', cattle continued to act as the monetary unit. Gradually, people came to the realization that using livestock as a means of exchange was inconvenient, because it was difficult to transport from one place to another, and such “money” was not very durable. That’s why marten fur is replacing livestock. It was much more convenient and practical.
As you know, the 9th-13th centuries were a time when economic relations were actively developing in Rus', trade ties were being established, both internal and external. Several major international routes passed through the lands of the Eastern Slavs at that time: “from the Varangians to the Greeks,” and from the 11th century - the Western Dvina and others. In the cities where goods were exchanged, one could meet representatives of different nations, such as a cold-blooded Viking merchant, an ardent Arab, a calculating merchant from Germany and an arrogant Greek. Along with their goods, merchants, or, as they were also called, “guests,” brought their money, which gradually began to come into circulation on the territory of Ancient Rus'. During archaeological excavations, a huge number of treasures with Eastern and Western European coins were found. There are no coins of our own production dating from this time. This allows us to draw a logical conclusion. The influx of foreign coins was so great that there was simply no need to mint their own money. However, in the 10th-11th centuries in Kievan Rus an attempt was made to mint their own money - “zlatniks” and “srebreniks”. But, due to the fact that there was no objective need for this, the release was soon suspended.
So, from the 8th century, the main monetary unit of Ancient Rus' was Arab coins - silver dirhams. Their appearance changed periodically depending on the ruling dynasty. There were so many silver coins that the inventive Slavs came up with a new type of “money” - silver bars, which were also widespread.
The 11th century became a time of a kind of economic crisis in the East. Silver rises significantly in price and its influx to the lands of Ancient Rus' becomes less and less intense. The course of the East Slavic state is changing to strengthening ties with Western Europe, including trade. Therefore, Western European denarii are replacing Arab dirhams. They become the dominant form of monetary circulation on the lands of Rus' until the arrival of the conquerors.
If we open one of the main historical sources on the history of Ancient Rus', “Russian Truth,” we will not be able to find there a single mention of either dirhams or denarii. The fact is that in Rus' all foreign coins were given local names. Some of them have been in use for many centuries. Thus, in “Russkaya Pravda” to denote monetary units there are such terms as “kuna”, “nagoda”, “rezana”, “veksha”, “squirrel”. Kuna - from the previously existing “marten fur”, “nagoda” denoted coins of the best quality, and rezana, veksha and squirrel were smaller parts of kuna. Since the 11th century, references to such a monetary unit as “hryvnia” (silver ingot) appear. Part of the hryvnia cut in half was called the familiar word “ruble”.
The period of the XII-XIV centuries was called “coinless”. For 3 centuries the coin disappeared from the territory of Rus'. The East Slavic lands found themselves under the burden of the Tatar-Mongol yoke. At this time, silver bars were still in circulation, and the role of small “currency units” was played by jewelry made of expensive stones and glass.
The end of Tatar rule opened a new stage in the development of the monetary system in Rus'. From the second half of the 14th century, the widespread minting of their own silver and copper coins began in the East Slavic lands.

monetary and weight unit of Ancient Rus'

Alternative descriptions

In Ancient Rus' - a silver ingot weighing about 200 g, which served as a monetary and weight unit (approximately 0.175 pounds of silver)

In Ancient Rus' of the pre-Mongol period, a gold or silver neck decoration was called a pectoral by the Scythians

Monetary and weight unit in Ancient Rus': a silver ingot weighing about half a pound

Neck decoration, metal hoop (ethnographic)

Neck decoration in the form of a hoop

Ukrainian currency

Russian unit of weight equal to 0.5 pounds

Currency of Ukraine

Banknote in Kyiv

Ancestor of the ruble

The currency that walks the streets of Kyiv

. "ruble" of Ukraine

Ukrainian "tunrik"

Currency "made in" Ukraine

Money in a Ukrainian's stash

Currency in a Ukrainian's pocket

Currency of the country dumplings

Currency at the cash desks of Kyiv stores

The currency that replaced the karbovanets

Money of Ukraine

The currency that replaced the karbovanets

Money from Kiev

Money Square

Ukrainian "ruble"

Ukrainian "tugrik"

National currency of Ukraine

Ukrainian "buck"

Ukrainian "ruble"

Monetary unit of Kievan Rus

Ukrainian's native currency

The last of the Ukrainian Karbovanets

Currency for purchasing Tavria

Currency in Ukrainian stores

Old Russian monetary unit

. “greasy” ruble

Currency for purchasing vodka

Monetary unit in ancient Rus'

Ukrainian ruble

Old Russian coin equal to 10 kopecks

Ancient neck decoration

Monetary and weight unit of Rus'

Dime

. "Greased" ruble

. "ruble" of Ukraine

Currency "made in" Ukraine

Currency of an Eastern European country

Currency for purchasing "Tavria"

J. old a type of medallion, palm, icon, copper, silver, gold, usually folded, worn on a chain, around the neck; granted hryvnia, which are now orders; a large silver coin, probably also worn around the neck; now ten kopecks. Under Peter, the hryvnia was a lot of silver; gr. gold chervonets. Under Yaroslav, the hryvnia was nogat or rezani, putting two rezani per kuna or muzzle, or hryvnia per pounds of silver. Chayal, hryvnia: ten kopecks! Those who do not save hryvnias are not worth the ruble. Hryvnia, yes hryvnia, and twenty kopecks. I hate the hryvnia like a beggar. Every step means a hryvnia. The ruble is no match for the hryvnia. Take the cow cheese, and put in the gold hryvnia, wedding. steps on a kopeck, locks the gate with a half-kopeck, is prosperous and caring. A hryvnia, a hryvnia, a hryvnia will detract. In the old days, a hryvnia meant weight; pound (under Shuisky)? Pendant for images, butt. I hung a hryvnia to my angel, a chervonets. tailors, hryvnia vm. mane, cutout in the back of clothing, for a collar. M. or hryvnia, psk. dime, ten-kopeck coin; the kryvennik is silver, and the hryvnia is copper, three kopecks of silver, which the people, according to old memory, transfer to the copper account. Hryvnia adj. worth hryvnia; related to her. To earn ten cents, trade or save small things; haggle

Ukrainian "rublik"

Ukrainian "ruble"

Ukrainian "tugrik"

Ukrainian "tunrik"

Ukrainian "buck"

Ukrainian banknote

Neck decoration

Before the appearance of their own coins, Roman denarii, Arab dirhams, and Byzantine solidi were in circulation in Rus'. In addition, it was possible to pay the seller with fur. From all these things the first Russian coins arose.

Serebryanik

The first coin minted in Rus' was called a silver coin. Even before the baptism of Rus', during the reign of Prince Vladimir, it was cast from silver Arab dirhams, of which there was an acute shortage in Rus'. Moreover, there were two designs of silver coins. At first, they copied the image of the Byzantine solidi coins: on the front side there was an image of a prince sitting on a throne, and on the back - Pantocrator, i.e. Jesus Christ. Soon, silver money underwent a redesign: instead of the face of Christ, the Rurikovich family sign - a trident - began to be minted on coins, and around the portrait of the prince there was a legend: “Vladimir is on the table, and this is his silver” (“Vladimir is on the throne, and this is his money”).

Zlatnik

Along with the silver coin, Prince Vladimir minted similar gold coins - zlatniki or zolotniki. They were also made in the manner of Byzantine solidi and weighed about four grams. Despite the fact that there were very few of them in number - a little more than a dozen zlatniks have survived to this day - their name is firmly entrenched in popular sayings and proverbs: a zlotnik is small, but it is heavy. The spool is small, but it weighs gold; the camel is large, but it carries water. Not a share in pounds, a share in spools. Trouble comes in pounds and goes away in gold.

Hryvnia

At the turn of the 9th - 10th centuries, a completely domestic monetary unit appeared in Rus' - the hryvnia. The first hryvnias were weighty bars of silver and gold, which were more of a weight standard than money - they could be used to measure the weight of the precious metal. Kyiv hryvnias weighed about 160 grams and were shaped like a hexagonal ingot, while Novgorod hryvnias were a long bar weighing about 200 grams. Moreover, hryvnias were also in use among the Tatars - in the Volga region the “Tatar hryvnia”, made in the shape of a boat, was known. The hryvnia got its name from a woman’s jewelry - a gold bracelet or hoop, which was worn on the neck - the scruff or mane.

Växa

The equivalent of the modern penny in ancient Rus' was the veksha. Sometimes she was called a squirrel or a veritetka. There is a version that, along with the silver coin, a tanned winter squirrel skin was in circulation, which was its equivalent. There are still disputes around the chronicler’s famous phrase about what the Khazars took as tribute from the glades, northerners and Vyatichi: a coin or a squirrel “from the smoke” (at home). To save up for a hryvnia, an ancient Russian person would need 150 centuries.

Kuna

The eastern dirham was also used in Russian lands. It, and also the European denarius, which was also popular, was called kuna in Rus'. There is a version that the kuna was originally the skin of a marten, squirrel or fox with a princely mark. But there are other versions related to the foreign origin of the name kuna. For example, many other peoples who had the Roman denarius in circulation have a name for the coin that is consonant with the Russian kuna, for example, the English coin.

Rezana

The problem of accurate calculation in Rus' was solved in its own way. For example, they cut the skin of a marten or other fur-bearing animal, thereby adjusting a piece of fur to a particular price. Such pieces were called rezans. And since the fur skin and the Arab dirham were equivalent, the coin was also divided into parts. To this day, halves and even quarters of dirhams are found in ancient Russian treasures, because the Arab coin was too large for small trade transactions.

Nogata

Another small coin was the nogata - it was worth about a twentieth of a hryvnia. Its name is usually associated with the Estonian nahat - fur. In all likelihood, nogata was also originally the fur skin of some animal. It is noteworthy that in the presence of all kinds of small money, they tried to associate every thing with their money. In “The Tale of Igor’s Host,” for example, it is said that if Vsevolod were on the throne, then the price for a slave would be “at the price,” and the price for a slave would be “at a price.”

The names of monetary units, as an element of any culture, confirm the existence in the past of a single Slavic people, torn apart by enemies throughout its history, from the very beginning to the present day.

Each national monetary accounting system has a basic unit: in the modern Russian system - the ruble, in the British - the pound sterling, in the ancient Attic system - the drachma. Along with the basic unit, there are derivatives. So, a penny, a cent, a pfennig is nothing more than hundredths of a ruble, a dollar, a mark. But this is now, but what was it like before?

There is a version in scientific circles that claims that the Russian state did not have a national currency system until the 14th century, when the emergence of the ruble is noted. And this, despite the domestic and international trade that Russian merchants conducted!

However, not everyone agrees with such statements. All of Slavic Europe traded. Mentions of unique monetary units on birch bark documents have been preserved. We find the same names in trade agreements with Byzantium and in the Truth of Yaroslav. Modern Slavic countries have also retained their unique terminology, as a trace of the former unity of the great culture.

Let's figure it out.

There seems to be a lack of money in Rus'. But here's the surprise. Every fifth birch bark letter from Novgorod deals with financial relationships: the purchase and sale of goods, debt obligations, payment for work, wills, etc.

Charter 526, Novgorod, 1050-1075, this is a debt list.

Prorisi translation:
“Behind Boyan in Ruse, hryvnia. For Zhitobud in Rus ista (i.e. the actual debt, without interest) is 13 kunas and hryvnia. In Luga, for Negorad, together with interest, 3 kunas and a hryvnia, for Dobrovit with people, 13 kunas and a hryvnia, for Nezhko Prozhnevich, half a hryvnia, for Siroma, without two legs, a hryvnia. On Sheloni for Dobromysl 10 kunas, for Zhivotok 2 hryvnias in fragments [of silver]. On Seliger for Khmun (or: Khmuna) and for Drozd 5 hryvnias without kuna, for Azgut and for pogoshchans 6 hryvnias and 9 kunas. In Dubrovna for Khripan there are 2 hryvnias and 19 [kunas].”

On various birch bark documents, unique monetary units are mentioned: hryvnia, kuna, nogat, rezan, veksha, bele, ruble, half-ruble.

Kuns and nogat with hryvnias are also found in “Russian Truth” - the oldest code of Russian laws (XI-XII centuries). In the ancient code, for crimes and violations of rules, a certain monetary fine is specified in these monetary units.

What was that? Coins, colored stones, or cat paws? Many were confused by the similarity between Kuhn’s words and a marten. Even Karamzin wrote this down in his “History of the Russian State.” The thought of leather money arose. Next in Dyachenko’s dictionary there is already a girl = KUNKA, derived from the word KUNA as giving the groom for the bride “kun money”. It is written in the dictionary that KUNA is a skin as a currency. However, all Slavs know the humorous tradition of ransoming the bride on her wedding day.

The action takes place in the courtyard of the house. The groom must solve riddles, demonstrating knowledge about the future family and mother-in-law, he will have to perform feats in the name of love for his chosen one. The meaning of this ritual is to demonstrate to the relatives the seriousness of the groom’s intentions. The “redemption” process itself takes place near the house where the bride lives. This is, of course, not a ransom in the sense of purchasing the bride as property.

In reality, in Rus' they did not buy girls, but on the contrary, they took a dowry for them. This is also reflected in the birch bark documents of the 12th century.

Charter 9, Novgorod, 1160-1180, petition of an abandoned wife. “From Gostyata to Vasil. What my father gave me and what my relatives gave me in addition is his. And now, having married a new wife, he gives me nothing. Having struck my hands (as a sign of a new engagement), he drove me away and took the other as his wife. Come and do me a favor."

Karamzin did not know, and the falsifiers of history all the more had no idea that the truth was contained in birch bark leaves, which at that time had yet to be excavated in the Novgorod land.

Prasanskrit, the language of the Slavs, the Turkic dialects of the Volgars, that’s what the Russian language is. “Russian”, “Russian” these words are so close to the concept known today. “Russki” means the connection of clans (in the Erzya language) and “ruskej” - “red” in the sense of the direction to the geographic south (in the Corella language).

For several centuries, the colors of the Russian flag, like the Karelian color compass, symbolize the union of the peoples of the east - blue, the west - white and the south - red.

Of course, this cannot be called accidental, but...

It is very reckless to interpret the ancient harmonies that have reached us from the position of modern Russian. Some are captivated by the charm of such similarities, while others use this fact for falsification.

In short, in history, especially Slavic and Russian history, one cannot rush to conclusions.

The monetary units listed above are exclusively Slavic. What is especially valuable in ancient documents is the obvious connection of distant events with the way of life and with the terms arising from this. This filter mercilessly rejects the fantasies of counterfeiters.

Let's look back at modern times.

The reverse side of the modern 1000 Croatian kuna banknote, issued in 1993, shows the Zagreb Cathedral.

And here are 50 Croatian limes. They are equal to half of one kuna.

For reference.

1 kuna=100 lipa.

In 1990, coins were minted indicating the state "Republic of Slovenia" in denominations of 0.02, 0.05, 0.10, 0.20, 1, 10 and 50 lipa. The monetary unit of Slovenia during this period was the Yugoslav dinar. But the Slavs remember their history.

Exchange rates in Croatian Kuna as of 11/15/2013:

Source: ru.exchange-rates.org

Euro (EUR) 7.6285

Russian Ruble (RUB) 0.1734

US Dollar (USD) 5.6701

Supporters of Normanism cannot allow such progress for the “savages”. You can come across statements that nogata, rezana, kuna... are associated exclusively with certain trimmings. Skin trimmings are cut, marten heads are kuna, paws are nogata. And the Croatian “kopecks” - lindens - are supposedly linden pieces of wood. Just imagine the masses of fur and wood scraps used as bargaining chips and their turnover in trade. Well, these are the kind of wallets you need to carry to the market. On the other hand, I have to have two legs, and what’s the problem? Catch a stray cat and you will repay the entire debt with interest, and even a whole tail of profit.

Only the Slavs lived in harmony with nature and did not make a living out of knackering.

Just pay attention to the modern money of the Republic of Belarus. Depending on the denomination, the banknotes depict different animals. For this reason, Belarusian rubles are commonly referred to as “bunnies”.

In front of you is not a bunny, but a full-fledged Belarusian ruble.

I imagine the distant future. Descendants will read about such a “bunny” and the conclusion is ready - in post-Soviet Belarus, the skins of hares served as money.

Fur and fake money is complete absurdity.

However, this nonsense continues to be circulated today. With what joy do Slavophobes spread the ideas of the “historian” Schlözer. I’m surprised they didn’t think of interpreting the name kopeck as payment for goods in spears.

But in reality?

Let's start with linden trees.

Did you know that seven European languages have a modified name for the month “July”. In these countries, the name of the summer month is derived not from the Roman female name Julia, but from the Slavic word "linden", for example, the Croatian "lipanj".

Lipen is the month when linden trees bloom. Their scent is used by perfumers; grandmothers use linden blossom to treat their grandchildren. There is hardly a better remedy for colds than the original Slavic product linden honey. The Slavic names of many cities, rivers and streets are dedicated to Lipa. Leipzig and Lipetsk are still on the map. Europe is full of settlements with the name “Lipica”. Or Unter den Linden. This is Berlin's boulevard "Under the Linden Trees".

Among the Slavs and pre-German tribes, the linden was considered a holy tree. The ancient Greek poets Homer, Virgil, Ovid, Herodotus endowed Lipa with various virtues. In Russia, a female name is known - Lipa. It was in honor of such veneration that the Lipa coin arose. A coin is like a coin, but they talk to us about pieces of wood.

Now let’s deal with “selfish money”. This is an interesting job.

Supporters of the version of “leather” money among the Slavs rely on information from the 13th century - Notes of the traveler Rubruk, of course, in Latin. Notes are like notes, but here's the translation... . The first translation of the notes was made in the 17th century. into French. The translation stated that in the southern Russian steppes, multi-colored pieces of leather allegedly served as money. The authors of dictionaries that appeared no earlier than the 17th century and, unfortunately, Karamzin relied on this translation. The correctness of the translation was not in doubt until a modern translation showed that Rubruk did not write about money, but about types of fur.

Historians of the early 19th century, well acquainted with the “blue” and “red” (the popular name for banknotes), somehow managed to convince themselves that the “multi-colored pieces of leather” even had stamps on them as on banknotes of the 19th century! One problem is that no one has yet discovered such a miracle in nature.

To the “translations” of Rubruk in history were added strange documents in Latin from the times of the Russian-Hansean trade, in which “capita martarorum” (automatic translation - “marten’s head”) appears as payment value, or here are the notes of Guilbert de Lannoy after visiting Novgorod and Pskov . An essay dated 1412 states that Russians make large payments in silver bars, and the “coins” are the “heads” of martens and squirrels.

Imagine the picture. The trade agreement is concluded in a tavern. Having noted the deal, the cunning Novgorodian pays the drunken foreigner with herring heads. According to the logic of the Norman translations, it turns out that the Hanseatic merchants accepted all sorts of nonsense from the Slavs instead of money. This is how you should not respect your own. Or maybe even today someone in the EU is ready to accept “capita martarorum”, greasy from consumption, from Slavic merchants in exchange for their goods?

Although we are talking about capital heads, there is a headless approach to the translation of Russian terms, but rather a biased one. How else can such “works” be characterized if the Latin “capita” - the head, the basis of the economy of the whole world, is interpreted as it should be for terms. From “capita” begins the all-encompassing term - CAPITAL. Today no one translates this term to mean “head of cattle.” There are many derivatives from this word. "Captain" is the leader of the ship. The jargon “fucked up” means losing your head or the end of power. But try to translate Marx’s famous work “Capital” using the Norman method, you will get a complete hee hee. However, it didn’t come to that.

Writing about Rus' is a different matter. Any derogatory fantasies are permissible here. I even saw the rag money of our ancestors. Meanwhile...

And here it is.

An exceptional role in the development of monetary circulation in Europe belongs to oriental silver coins - dirhams of the Arab Caliphate and other states that arose on its territory.

“Dirhams that came into Russian circulation from the East,” noted I.G. Spassky, “were minted over a vast territory - in many cities of Central Asia, Iran, Transcaucasia, Mesopotamia and Asia Minor, on the African shores of the Mediterranean Sea and even in the Arab part of Spain "

The influx of eastern coins, which began at the end of the 8th century, quickly became intense, and the circulation of coins took place over a vast territory that exceeded the lands of the Slavic peoples. The earliest of these coins were found in Russian soil and date back to 862. The coins were discovered in Moscow near the mouth of the Chertory stream at its confluence with the Moscow River. Today the restored Cathedral of Christ the Savior stands here.

Now let’s try to explain the meaning of Slavic monetary units ourselves, without Norman translators.

A modern view shows that one cannot rush to conclusions about the terms of Slavic and Russian history translated from Latin.

The word “nogata” is related to the Arabic verb “naqada”, meaning to sort coins, select good specimens. Already at that distant time, coins were minted in imitation of Arab dirhams. The term is associated with the circulation of money, not with someone's limbs.

Same with “kuna”. T.F. Efremov, creating his Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian Language, turned to the eastern traditions of the Turkic and Caucasian peoples, and as a result - again a link to monetary relations.

1) A ransom that saves from blood feud.

2) Redemption to the groom’s parents in the event of a breakdown in matchmaking due to the fault of the family

No matter what, everywhere in our history there is a connection with the East, and certainly not with the Normans and Latins.

Western translators are consistently let down by the formalism and consonance of Russian words with words of Turkic origin. Even Lomonosov failed to convince the German academicians of a fact that was obvious to any Russian. The visiting academicians at the royal court knew neither about the culture nor about the languages of the peoples of the Volga region, and even more so did not master the linguistic diversity of the Caucasus.

Unfortunately, a similar picture is observed today. Modern science quite seriously repeats stories about some kind of leather money. High scientific officials do not hesitate to confirm centuries-old stupidity based on dishonest translation.

Translations and traditions of Rus'.

Formal translations are still known today. Remember “Kuzka’s mother” mentioned by N.S. Khrushchev in Sokolniki in 1959 in a dispute with Richard Nixon. Then the translators of the US President conveyed to their delegation an invitation from the first person of the USSR to meet the mother of a certain Kuzma. In response, Khrushchev commented on his words: “Why are you, translators, suffering? All I'm saying is that we're going to show America something it's never seen before."

Following Khrushchev, our military also called Kuzka's mother something that America had not seen - one of the Soviet nuclear bombs.

But in fact, the promise to show Kuzka’s mother is a half-forgotten, humorous wedding tradition. Kuzka is the name of the whip that the groom put in his boot on the wedding day “on Kuzminki” (November 1). The kuzka whip is a symbol of marital power. Russian weddings are always filled with deep symbolism of diverse rituals. Saints Cosmas and Damian (feast day on November 1) were considered patrons of weddings in Russian culture. Weddings in Rus' were combined with ancient traditions and buffoonery. One of the traditions was dressing one of the guests as Kuzka’s mother. A whole performance was played out around the character. That’s why the threat to show Kuzka’s mother had a humorous connotation. The mischievous brownie was also nicknamed Kuzka. The author of these lines also had a chance to attend similar weddings in the Vladimir region. Similar traditions are known to both the Udmurts and the Komi people. Traditions are forgotten, and with them the original meaning of words.

Money and the name of units is not a recent tradition. But how could foreign historians of the times of Peter and Catherine know the traditions of the people, if those “historians” did not even know the language of this people?

Real rates of Russian monetary units.

For flexibility, the monetary system must contain, in addition to the main units, their parts. Moreover, these parts should be known and accepted by foreign merchants and their own princes.

According to the Brief Truth (legislative source of the 11th century), 1 hryvnia = 20 nogat = 25 kun = 50 rez.

After serious searches, it was possible to reconstruct the monetary and weight system that operated in Rus' at that distant time.

Why weight? Since coins were made of gold and silver, the main thing is not what is written on them, but how much gold and, accordingly, silver they contain.

In treaties with the Greeks of the 10th century there are the very first mentions of the Russian hryvnia. From ancient texts it follows that 12 hryvnias were equal to 5 Byzantine liters. Byzantine liter (coin) weighing 327.5 g.

But such coins have never been found on the territory of Ancient Rus'. It turned out that Russian money of ancient times was simply “pegged at the rate” to another Byzantine coin - half a Byzantine liter weighing 163.7 g. How was this discovered?

Linking Russian money to foreign half-liter.

We count the ratios known from “Russkaya Pravda” from the weight of half a liter and get:

the hryvnia should weigh 68.22 g,

kuna - 2.73 g,

nogata - 3.41 g,

chopped - 1.36 g.

This calculation was fully confirmed by weighing real coins and their scraps found by archaeologists on the territory of Ancient Rus'.

At the end of the 10th century it appeared and was cut. These were coins cut to the weight of 1/50 hryvnia.

Here is an old scrap of an ancient dirham.

If coins were accepted and checked for weight, then their trimmings were simply necessary as makeweights. These clippings are somewhat reminiscent of the phase of the Moon (remember the interpretation of the word “coin” as Mont i.e. Month).

A search among the scraps of Arab coins for other weight values such as 1/3, 1/4, 1/8, 1/12, 1/24 and even 1/40 of an Arab dirham did not lead to anything. It turned out that the scraps available to archaeologists are not just parts of coins, but exact weight standard parts equal to Russian nogat, kun, rezan...

Conclusion.

National Russian monetary units were built according to the following scheme:

The hryvnia, as the main unit, was pegged at the exchange rate to the Byzantine half-liter.

The hryvnia had derivative units - kuna, nogata, rezana. Others were added later. In fact, these were not coins, but standard units of monetary weight.

Monetary terms instead of coins and bars.

They did not mint their own coins, with the exception of short-term attempts immediately after Vladimirov’s baptism, but they operated in national monetary terms. Subsequently the so-called The Kyiv hryvnia began to be called a coin bar weighing equal to half a Byzantine liter 163-165g.

After the influx of Arab dirhams to Europe ceases, the so-called coinless period. However, the former names of Russian monetary units continue to be present in the commercial and administrative life of the Slavs. What they were like at that time will be discussed in the next article. Until the coins disappear, let's continue.

Kuna is a coin. The kuna was the dirham, the Western European dinarius that replaced it, and the Russian piece of silver. Why be surprised? The transition to a new weight and even type of payment unit does not at all require the abandonment of the usual paternal name. The oldest common Slavic name for the coin is consonant with the name COIN, which appeared in Northern Europe on the basis of the circulation of the Roman denarius. Having supplanted the term “silver”, the word “kuna” was permanently entrenched in Slavic languages in the meaning of “money”. And the word “money” itself goes back to the obvious eastern word TANGA.

Today, in common parlance you can hear the word “kryvennik” as the name of a coin with a face value of 10 units. But we don't always mean 10 kopecks. The coin can be a modern ten-ruble coin or any foreign one with a denomination of 10. Also with other denominations. Even the route of Moscow tram No. 50 is still called fifty dollars by old-timers today.

Now about Litra.

Its initial use was found in Ancient Greece in the meaning of ransom. Lytron, from lyein, to free. Litra - ransom money for the person or property of a slave. (Mikhelson A.D., 1865).

Here we see a unified systematic approach in terminology, as in the case of the Russian currency unit “kuna,” which originally served as a ransom for blood feud.

Of course, with a strong desire, someone can see the ransom of a slave for two half-liters. But that's their problem. It’s just that vodka had not yet been invented in those days.

Connection with the East.

In addition to pieces of Arab coins, historians have at their disposal gigantic treasures of imitative dirhams minted in the ancient Volga Bulgar. In addition to dirhams, denarii were also found in the Volga region treasures. But they don’t seem to see these coins. Otherwise, we will have to recognize the connection between Rus' and Eastern culture, but scientists, as if spellbound, repeat Norman nonsense about Kievan Rus, repeating about coinless selfishness, as if afraid of the obvious - a revision of modern historiography.

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Let's figure it out.

Charter 526, Novgorod, 1050-1075, this is a debt list.

On various birch bark documents, unique monetary units are mentioned: hryvnia, kuna, nogat, rezan, veksha, bele, ruble, half-ruble.

In reality, in Rus' they did not buy girls, but on the contrary, they took a dowry for them. This is also reflected in the birch bark documents of the 12th century.

Karamzin did not know, and the falsifiers of history all the more had no idea that the truth was contained in birch bark leaves, which at that time had yet to be excavated in the Novgorod land.

Prasanskrit, the language of the Slavs, the Turkic dialects of the Volgars, that’s what the Russian language is. “Russian”, “Russian” these words are so close to the concept known today. “Russki” means the connection of clans (in the Erzya language) and “ruskej” - red"in the sense of direction to the geographic south (in the language of Corellas).

For several centuries, the colors of the Russian flag, like the Karelian color compass, symbolize the union of the peoples of the east - blue, the west - white and the south - red.

Of course, this cannot be called accidental, but...

In short, in history, especially Slavic and Russian history, one cannot rush to conclusions.

Let's look back at modern times.

On the reverse side of a modern 1000 Croatian banknote kun, released in 1993, depicts the Zagreb Cathedral.

I imagine the distant future. Descendants will read about such a “bunny” and the conclusion is ready - in post-Soviet Belarus, the skins of hares served as money.

Fur and fake money is complete absurdity.

But in reality?

Let's start with linden trees.

Now let’s deal with “selfish money”. This is an interesting job.

Although we are talking about capital heads, there is a headless approach to the translation of Russian terms, but rather a biased one. How else can one characterize such “works” if the Latin “capita” - head the basis of the economy of the whole world, is interpreted as it should be for terms. From “capita” begins the all-encompassing term - CAPITAL. Today no one translates this term to mean “head of cattle.” There are many derivatives from this word. "Captain" is the leader of the ship. The jargon “fucked up” means losing your head or the end of power. But try to translate Marx’s famous work “Capital” using the Norman method, you will get a complete hee hee. However, it didn’t come to that.

Writing about Rus' is a different matter. Any derogatory fantasies are permissible here. I even saw the rag money of our ancestors. Meanwhile...

And here it is.

An exceptional role in the development of monetary circulation in Europe belongs to oriental silver coins - dirhams of the Arab Caliphate and other states that arose on its territory.

Now let’s try to explain the meaning of Slavic monetary units ourselves, without Norman translators.

A modern view shows that one cannot rush to conclusions about the terms of Slavic and Russian history translated from Latin.

1) A ransom that saves from blood feud.

2) Redemption to the groom’s parents in the event of a breakdown in matchmaking due to the fault of the family

No matter what, everywhere in our history there is a connection with the East, and certainly not with the Normans and Latins.

Translations and traditions of Rus'.

Following Khrushchev, our military also called Kuzka's mother something that America had not seen - one of the Soviet nuclear bombs.

Real rates of Russian monetary units.

For flexibility, the monetary system must contain, in addition to the main units, their parts. Moreover, these parts should be known and accepted by foreign merchants and their own princes.

According to the Brief Truth (legislative source of the 11th century), 1 hryvnia = 20 nogat = 25 kun = 50 rez.

Conclusion.

National Russian monetary units were built according to the following scheme:

The hryvnia, as the main unit, was pegged at the exchange rate to the Byzantine half-liter.

The hryvnia had derivative units - kuna, nogata, rezana. Others were added later. In fact, these were not coins, but standard units of monetary weight.

Monetary terms instead of coins and bars.

Today, in common parlance you can hear the word “kryvennik” as the name of a coin with a face value of 10 units. But we don't always mean 10 kopecks. The coin can be a modern ten-ruble coin or any foreign one with a face value of 10. Also with other denominations. Even the route of Moscow tram No. 50 is still called fifty dollars by old-timers today.

Now about Litra.

Its initial use was found in Ancient Greece in the meaning of ransom. Lytron, from lyein, to free. Litra - ransom money for the person or property of a slave. (Mikhelson A.D., 1865).

Here we see a unified systematic approach in terminology, as in the case of the Russian currency unit “kuna,” which originally served as a ransom for blood feud.

Of course, with a strong desire, someone can see the ransom of a slave for two half-liters. But that's their problem. It’s just that vodka had not yet been invented in those days.

Connection with the East.

Well known fact. On the coins of Dmitry Donskoy of Russian minting there are both Russian and Tatar inscriptions. The connection with tributary relations has nothing to do with it, they simply did not exist. Rus' in a similar way established connections between its then still young currency and the markets of the Middle East through the Volga region.

To be continued.