Archaeologists have uncovered a rare silver coin minted during the reign of Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich, providing fresh insight into the early history of medieval Rus’ and the relationship between Novgorod and Kyiv more than 1,000 years ago.
The coin was discovered during rescue excavations conducted by the Novgorod Expedition of the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences at a construction site on Troitskaya Street in Veliky Novgorod. Dating to the late 10th or early 11th century, it is only the third silver coin of Vladimir Svyatoslavich ever found in the city.
Ancient Russian coins are exceptionally rare in northwestern Russia. Until now, only four silver coins of Vladimir Svyatoslavich (c. 960–1015) had been recorded in the region. Two of those were previously unearthed in Veliky Novgorod during archaeological excavations in 2010 and 2023.
The latest discovery was made on 24 July within the oldest cultural deposits at the excavation site, where archaeologists uncovered evidence that the area was first settled in the late 10th century. The 130-square-metre excavation revealed the remains of a medieval estate, along with more than 600 individual artefacts and around 55,000 additional finds, including pottery fragments, leather offcuts, animal bones and objects made from bone, amber, glass, stone and metal.
The newly discovered coin is made of high-grade silver and survives as one half of the original piece, having been deliberately cut in antiquity. It weighs 1.90 grams and belongs to the earliest known type of Vladimir’s silver coinage, believed by historians to have been introduced around the time of the Christianisation of Rus’.
One side depicts Prince Vladimir seated in a cloak, holding a cross while a trident—his dynastic symbol—appears beside his shoulder. An inscription identifies the coin as “Vladimir’s silver”. The reverse features a bust of Jesus Christ holding the Gospel, reflecting the Christian imagery adopted following the conversion of Rus’.
Researchers say the coin’s excellent state of preservation enabled them to match it with examples struck from the same dies that have previously been identified in a hoard discovered in Kaluga Region and another find from the Chernihiv region.
Around 800 silver coins of Vladimir Svyatoslavich are currently known, divided into four principal types. The newly discovered example belongs to the first and earliest issue, of which approximately 300 specimens have been recorded.
The discovery is considered significant because Vladimir’s coins are generally found much closer to Kyiv, where historians believe they were minted. Most isolated finds have come from southern Rus’, particularly the historic principalities of Kyiv, Chernihiv and Pereyaslavl. Only in recent years have similar coins been recovered further north, including in the Kursk, Bryansk, Tula, Kaluga and Vladimir regions.
Archaeologists say the Novgorod discovery broadens the known distribution of the earliest Russian coinage and provides further evidence of political and economic links between Novgorod and Kyiv during the formative years of the early Russian state.
The coin also adds to the limited archaeological evidence for Novgorod’s earliest decades, a period that remains only sparsely documented in written historical sources.
Researchers noted that, like the two previous silver coins found in the city, the latest discovery was made during rescue excavations ahead of modern construction work, highlighting the continuing archaeological importance of development-led investigations in one of medieval Rus’ most significant historic centres.
Sources : Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS)
