Menelaos

Hi guys, Thanks a lot for your advice!! It's not too much of a disappointment, especially since I probablypaid only a few dollars for it. And I like that story of the Leningrad mad man, and how this coin may be his work. See you!

Dear all, First of all, since I am new to this forum: Hi to all of you!! I have been following this forum for a while, and I am pretty impressed by the shared knowledge on these pages. As a new member I hope you guys could help me out with this one, a piece I bought on a flea market in Tbilisi, Georgia, some years ago. As you can see on the pictures included, it concerns what appears to be a ruble of Peter I from the 1704 issue. If only it wasn't minted in copper... My knowledge on Russian coins is limited, and I don't have a Bitkin catalogue to check, but aren't these rubles supposed to be in silver only? The legends say clearly that it is a ruble though... Can this be a trial piece or pattern coin? There seem to be traces of a double struck on the front side. A forgery seems improbable to me, given the copper... Other detail I need to mention is probably that the edge is very smooth. But perhaps this applies for all genuine 1704 rubles? Diameter is 43 mm. Weight unknown. Hope you can help me this one! Thanks in advance!! Greetings from Belgium!!