Museum coin collections. Mint of Vagit Alekperov

The Numismatics Department of the State Historical Museum stores over 1.7 million items, including doublets, Russian coins (over 600 thousand), antique (58 thousand), eastern (138 thousand), western (188 thousand), paper banknotes (471 thousand), commemorative medals domestic (38 thousand) and foreign (21 thousand), orders, award medals and signs Russian and foreign (over 27 thousand), seals, emblems and official signs (more than 8 thousand .). The basis of the collection is an exceptionally complete collection of monuments of Russian money circulation.

The numismatic collection of the Historical Museum began to take shape in the first years of the museum's existence from donated individual items and small collections. Soon it began to be completed systematically, often through purchases. In 1886-1917. the museum received: a collection of Russian coins of the founder of Russian numismatic science A. D. Chertkov, a collection of P. O. Burachkov, a well-known collector and researcher of coins of the Northern Black Sea region, many items from the magnificent collections of P. I. S. Uvarova. The Imperial Archaeological Commission actively participated in the acquisition, thanks to which many wonderful treasures of Russian coins entered the museum's funds.

Since 1895, obligatory samples of products of domestic mints began to be transferred to the museum. The entire numismatic collection was administered by the chief curator of the museum, A. V. Oreshnikov, an outstanding specialist in Russian and ancient numismatics. The formation of the department of coins, medals and seals is associated with the transfer in 1918-1919. a huge collection of oriental coins and Russian medals that belonged to the largest Moscow collector P. V. Zubov. The department was headed by A. V. Oreshnikov. P.V. Zubov also became the head of the sector, located in his house on the street. Malaya Alekseevskaya. After the death of P. V. Zubov (in 1921), his numismatic collection (200 thousand coins in 14 cabinets) and the library (in 30 cabinets) were moved to the main building of the museum. After the formation of an independent department of coins, medals and seals, its collection was replenished by the collections of the abolished Moscow Numismatic Society, the Museum of the Book, the Soviet Philatelic Association, and the Military History Museum. Many interesting items came to the department from Gokhran. The Department of Numismatics of the State Hermitage Museum assisted in the acquisition of funds, in 1930 it transferred to the State Historical Museum the rarest Russian coin - the ruble of the "emperor" Konstantin, who never reigned, minted in 1825.

The process of expropriation of private property, which began after the October Revolution of 1917, led to the rapid growth of the numismatic collection, where requisitioned collections flocked. Many collectors voluntarily donated what they collected to the museum, hoping in this way to save historical values ​​from looting. The department systematically received excavation materials and coin hoards. As a result, by the end of the 1930s The Historical Museum became the owner of a numismatic collection, in its significance quite comparable with the collections of coins, medals, bonds, orders and decorations of the British Museum in London, the National Library in Paris, the Berlin Münzkabinet (as part of the Berlin Museums), the Museum of the American Numismatic Society in New York, the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg.

On October 7, 2015, the "International Numismatic Club" with an exposition museum hall was opened in Bolshoy Afanasevsky Lane in Moscow. The museum is located in a restored historical building of the Zinoviev-Yusupov chambers, built in the 17th century.

The MNK Museum was created on the initiative of Vagit Alekperov, President of PJSC LUKOIL. The exposition of the museum is completely formed on the basis of the personal collection of V.Yu. Alekperov.

The MNK Museum maintains close cooperation with the scientific and museum community and supports research in the field of numismatics.

The MNK Museum is a member of the most authoritative Russian and international organizations:
- Union of Museums of Russia
- International Council of Museums, ICOM (International Council of Museums)
- International Numismatic Council, INC (International Numismatic Council)

The main objectives of the museum:

• promote the development and popularization of numismatics;
• give a new impetus to the development of interest in national and world history;
• promote the development of private museum business.

In this regard, within the walls of the museum it is planned to organize thematic exhibitions of both public and private collections; hold conferences and lectures.

The museum is equipped with modern interactive equipment. On the tablets you can see the descriptions of the coins; view images of the front and back sides of coins photographed in excellent quality and high resolution. For each showcase, additional information about the era, events and personalities is given.

About the building

The Zinoviev-Yusupov Chambers, located in Bolshoi Afanasevsky Lane, is the oldest building in the district, the only large stone chambers of the 17th century north of Prechistenka. Even the fact that its facade stands out for the red line of the alley suggests that it has been standing here for a very long time and has a long history.

In 1685, the stolnik P. Zinoviev built stone chambers here and then for more than a hundred years the owners of the house were representatives of the noble family of the Zinovievs. One of them was the wife of Petrovsky midshipman and Moscow governor, Prince Boris Yusupov, Irina Mikhailovna. At the end of the 18th century, the house passed into the possession of the great-grandfather of Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy, Count Andrei Ivanovich Tolstoy. The last owner of this house before the revolution was the brother of Leo Tolstoy's wife, Alexander Andreevich Bers, a real state councilor, Orlovsky vice-governor.

In 2010, the restoration of the building was started, completed in early 2012. For this work, the Center for Traditional Culture "Preobrazhenskoe" (project manager - architect Tatyana Borisova) received the award of the competition "Moscow Restoration - 2012".

On December 15, 2015, within the framework of the IV International Cultural Forum in St. Petersburg, Vagit Alekperov, President of PJSC LUKOIL, was awarded the Phoenix Prize. The award was presented by the Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation Vladimir Medinsky. The prize was awarded for assistance in the preservation of architectural monuments and their adaptation to modern use.

The department's exposition presents more than thirty private collections received from donors since the 1980s. Currently, the museum collection includes over seven thousand works of Russian and Western European art of the 15th-20th centuries. These are painting, drawing, sculpture, applied art and artistic photography. Collections differ from each other in their focus and structure. They are divided by type of art, among them there are monographic and thematic.

From the practice of major museums in the world, it is known that when they enter their collections, private collections are disbanded, works of various types of art are distributed among several funds. Only the best works are selected for the exhibition. Thus, the integrity of a private collection is violated, its originality is lost, the identity of the collector fades into the background, being of interest, as a rule, only to specialists.

The exposition of the halls of the Department of Private Collections does not violate the integrity of individual collections and seeks to emphasize the original intention of those who created them over the years. At the same time, special attention is paid to the personality of each collector, his tastes and preferences. According to the definition of one of the first authors of the idea of ​​creating a museum of personal collections in Russia, Prince Sergei Shcherbatov, such a museum is designed to preserve the "spiritual connection" between the collection and its former owner.

A special place in the collection is given to the collection of the founder of the museum - a famous scientist, cultural figure of the 20th century. I. S. Zilberstein. It has over two thousand works of painting and graphics, occupying four halls in the exposition. These are works of the highest level, executed in various techniques and genres, representing the work of individual masters and various art associations, in particular, the masters of the World of Art. Such collections can already be independent museums in themselves.

Many collections are valuable due to the preservation of the original intention of the collector and high artistic quality. These include a collection of Russian realistic painting of the second half of the 19th - early 20th centuries by S. V. Solovyov, a metal carver, an example for which was the activity of P. M. Tretyakov; a collection of Russian painting of the late 19th - early 20th century by Professor A. N. Ramm from Leningrad; a collection of bronze animal sculptures by foreign and Russian masters of the 19th century, colonel of the veterinary service E. S. Stepanov.

The museum acquaints visitors with such collections that were collected throughout their lives by representatives of the Russian artistic and scientific intelligentsia. They include not only works of art, but also memorial items that introduce the personality of the collector. The theme of the artistic environment of a creative person found its embodiment in the hall, which presents paintings and graphic works from the collection of the great musician and pianist Svyatoslav Richter. He was a friend of the Pushkin Museum and the inspirer of the December Evenings music festival, held annually at the museum. Svyatoslav Teofilovich donated to the Department of Private Collections a collection of paintings and drawings by R. Falk, V. Shukhaev, N. Goncharova, D. Krasnopevtsev and other artists.

Often on sites where treasure hunters communicate, you can see dissatisfied reviews of our hobby colleagues who complain about the scarcity of expositions of local history museums dedicated to numismatics. Of course, not all even regional museums of local lore can boast of rich collections of coins, and the reasons for this are very different...

However, it's not just that.

In fact, it is a delicate and very difficult matter to competently organize an exposition dedicated exclusively to numismatics, and, in addition, any local history museum faces tasks that are much broader than simply illustrating the features of local monetary circulation. Therefore, in the permanent exhibitions of museums, as a rule, only a small fraction of copies of coins are presented from the amount of numismatic material that is actually stored in museum bins, that is, funds.

Naturally, for example, in the Hermitage, even the meager part of the collections that is presented in the permanent exhibition is capable of shaking the imagination, while in provincial museums, things are much sadder.

But the residents of the city of Kirov and the region were very lucky: just the other day, a new exhibition was opened in the Kirov Regional Museum of Local Lore, which presents a collection of numismatics from the museum's own funds.

Moreover, these funds have been collected since 1863!

On display at the Kirov Regional Museum of Local Lore.

Although the founding date of the museum is considered to be 1866 (the year of the official opening on the initiative of P.V. Alabin, the founder of the museum), the formation of the collection began several years earlier, just in 1863. At the same time, "numisms", as they were called in those days, began to arrive for the museum collection from all counties of the vast Vyatka province.

Founder of the museum Petr Alabin.

Interestingly, the Imperial Archaeological Commission, Kazan University, the Odessa Society of Russian History and Antiquities, etc., provided all possible assistance in collecting material.

Today, this numismatic collection is rightfully considered one of the largest collections, numbering more than 30,000 items.

The exhibition is dedicated to the anniversary of the Kirov Regional Museum of Local Lore - 150 years! And in this format, visitors to the museum have not seen a collection of coins for the entire period of its existence.

It is clear that the visitors are especially interested in coin complexes - treasures!

Or, as they are defined by the museum workers themselves - a pantry array. These are several complexes of copper coins of the 17th-20th centuries. and about 10 complexes of silver coins of the XV-XX centuries.

Of no less interest are complexes made of paper banknotes of the late 19th - early 20th centuries. Personally, I was especially attracted by the variety of subject matter of images of paper money from the period of the Civil War.

Well, what can we say about unusual coins, it’s definitely not every day you see “live”. Take, for example, the famous Sestroretsk ruble, albeit a fake one - an impressive coin! And square coins-boards of 1726 or a scattering of copper scales, nicknamed among the diggers "rebellious" (from the Copper Riot)!

By the way, the Sestroretsk ruble and coins-payments are not at all modern copies or fakes to deceive collectors, they come from the 18th century. Yes, fakes, but with their own history, which we will definitely tell you a little later.

There are also a number of exhibits that are not directly related to numismatics, such as Soviet and pre-revolutionary awards, signs, as well as seals, including crystal ones that surprise visitors a lot.

But still, the treasures produce the strongest, I would even say, stimulating (in a certain sense) impression. Curiously, some of them were found back in the pre-revolutionary period, and in museum showcases they coexist with treasures discovered in the Soviet period.

It should be noted that the museum staff did their best: the exposition is organized and designed in such a way that you get acquainted with all the exhibits literally in one breath.

You don’t have time to fantasize about how, and under what circumstances, the treasure of copper scales was hidden, and before your eyes the most beautiful silver rubles of the 18th century with the profiles of Russian emperors and empresses already appear. You move on to the next showcase and in front of you is a large treasure of pyataks (5 kopecks) of Catherine II, where each coin weighs about 50 grams.

And I have never seen such a luxurious selection of banknotes (paper money).

In a word, I did not expect that the numismatic exhibition in the provincial museum of local lore could turn out to be so rich in exhibits, competently designed, and as a result, to the delight of visitors, extremely interesting and informative!