3 Kopecks, Russian Empire, 1915

This copy

Accession

OM-00222

Series year

1915

Actually issued

1915

Signatures

This issue carries no bank manager or cashier signature.

Grade

VF (IBNS)

Clean, light handling. Estimated from the archival scan. Folds, soiling and edge condition are visible at this resolution; paper crispness, pinholes, small repairs and pressing are not.

Estimated value

$4 indicative

Category benchmark scaled for grade — an order of magnitude, not an appraisal. Priced 2026-09-07.

Dimensions

80.3 × 45.9 mm (±0.5, from the scan)

The type

Type

3 Kopecks, Russian Empire, 1915

Printer

Not established

Rarity

very common

Inscriptions

Obverse — what it stands for

Имѣютъ хожденіе наравнѣ съ мѣдной монетой

Circulate on a par with copper coin

Symbology

Imperial eagle in miniature

The crowned arms at stamp size, on card.

What was happening

A postage-stamp design pressed into service as coin. From 1915 the Treasury printed the small denominations on card, using the plates cut for the Romanov tercentenary stamps, and told the public plainly what they were: these circulate on a par with copper coin.

Metal had vanished from circulation almost as soon as the war began - hoarded for its intrinsic value the moment the currency looked shaky. These are the first visible step of the imperial monetary collapse: not inflation yet, just the quiet disappearance of anything worth melting.

This account belongs to the type, not this copy — it is shared by every 3 Kopecks, Russian Empire, 1915 in the collection.