| The XIV century. Dmitry of Don started coin minting. |
The first mentioning of “denga” – a Russian silver coin composing 1/200th part of ruble – is found in a document of 1381. It is reckoned that among the privileges given by Khan Tokhtamysh to some princes, and first of all to Prince Dmitry of Don, was the right of coin minting. During his reign (1359 – 1389) the Moscow princedom was one of the first to start minting. The coins were also stricken in the Novgorod, Ryazan, Pskov, Suzdal and other princedoms. At the beginning of the XV century there were about 20 minting centers in Russia. The coins of different princedoms varied in both weight and appearance.
On the first coin minted in the Moscow princedom, an armed warrior was depicted with a circle inscription “the stamp of the great prince” (without the name of the prince). On the reverse side of the coin there was an Arabic inscription with the name of Khan Tokhtamysh. The weight of the first Moscow denga was 2/3 of the weight of the Golden Horde dirkhem.
In the summer of 1382 Dmitry of Don started minting coins with the image of an armed prince warrior, as well as a man holding a snake by the tongue. The name Dmitry was added to the great prince’s title on the front side of the coin. Moreover, the Arabic inscription with the name of Khan Tokhtamysh was removed from the reverse, which was a serious challenge to the Khan. At first the coins with the name of Dmitry of Don were minted in the weight standard of his first nameless coins – 0,98 – 1,03 g. When it was noticed in Moscow that after Tokhtamysh’s currency reform of 1380 the weight of dirkhem became less, dengas were minted of the weight of 0,91 – 0,95 g in order to keep the weight ratio of three Moscow coins to two Tatar ones.
After Khan Tokhtamysh carried out a campaign to Russia and burned Moscow and other cities at the end of summer 1382, minting of coins with the name of Dmitry and the image of the prince warrior was stopped. Since the autumn of 1382 coins with the name and the images of a rooster and a small four-legged creature above it were issued.
At the end of the XIV century the Russian Princedoms minted silver denga which weighed about 0,93 g and amounted to 1/200th part of silver hryvnia. In Moscow 216 coins were minted out of a 48-zolotnik hryvnia. Later on the standard was not followed, which led to many.
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