The great ruler Stephen the Great, outstanding army commander and diplomat, was also concerned during his life with the economic prosperity of the country, supporting the development of crafts, trade and fairs. During his reign, groși and half groși minted in the dinar system were issued, a monetary system introduced in Moldova during the last reign of Petru Aron (1455-1457).
The coins were minted from silver of superior title, those that reflect stability in the economic life of the country at that time. Their masterful execution at the Suceava mint is among the beautiful artistic achievements during the reign of Stephen the Great.
During his reign, two types of issues were minted, for the two denominations: groși and half groși.
Type I issues have a split shield on the obverse; in the first quarter appears a rose surmounted by a cross and three fascias, in the second quarter. For the epigraph issues (groși), the image is accompanied by the circular legend with the name of the issuer: + STEFANVS VOIEVODA. On the other side appears the bour's head with a star between the horns accompanied by the heraldic furniture - the rose and the contoured crescent, placed to the right and left of the bour's head; circular legend: MOLDAVIE COIN.
On type II coins in the shield on the obverse appears a patriarchal cross (double) and the legend STEFANVSVOIEVOD or abbreviated STEFANVSVOIE. On the reverse, as in type I, the bour's head with heraldic attributes is preserved: rose right/crescent left and crescent right/rose left. A star or rose appears between the ox's horns. The legend accompanying the face with the bour head is MONETAMOLDAVI or abbreviated MONETAMOLDA.
The dating of Stephen the Great's coins is still under discussion. According to one opinion, type I issues were minted between 1457-1476, and type II between 1480/1481-1505 (Octavian Iliescu), and another 1465/1467-1475/1476 for type I and 1476/1479-1497 for type II (Ernest Oberländer-Târnoveanu).
The coins in this showcase were discovered during the archaeological excavations at Orheiul Vechi (Trebujeni, Orhei district) in the 6th and 7th decades of the 20th century:
1. Type I money issues, groși, silver 2. Type II money issues, groși, silver 3. Type II coin issue, half groși, silver
Prince Mihail Sturdza and his relations with Russia
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. VIII [XXIII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Mihail Sturdza, prince of Moldavia from 1834 to 1849, was a controversial figure in the modern history of Moldova. Mihail Sturdza was not just a political instrument of Russia in Romanian principalities, nor a governor of an ordinary Russian guberniya that was in his administration. Russia had created sufficient means to exercise control over the principalities, especially through the Russian consuls, as well as through information services. Prince Mihail Sturdza managed to skillfully use the protectorate of Russia to create political ascendancy in Moldova.
Close cooperation with the tsarist authorities, services rendered to Russia in the war of 1828-1829, personal contribution to the development of the Organic Regulations constituted sufficient evidences of Mihail Sturdza’s loyalty to Russia for the protectorate. He was supported from Petersburg by his cousins Alexandru Sturdza (1791-1854), one of the greatest theologians of the time, one of former advisers of Tsar Alexander I, and Ruxandra Sturdza. During his reign, he was trying to get out from under Russian tutelage, which he failed. Despite this, he enjoyed the consideration of Russian officials.
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Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. XII [XXVII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
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Bessarabian question reflected in the reports of the French ambassador in Petersburg Charles Auguste de Morny (1856-1857)
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. X [XXV], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Eugen-Tudor Sclifos
Documents on Bessarabia in the Archives of Foreign Aff airs in Paris (1856-1857)
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. XI [XXVI], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
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The Peace Congress of Paris in 1856. Franco-Russian relations and the Romanian Question
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. IX [XXIV], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie Chișinău, 2015
The great ruler Stephen the Great, outstanding army commander and diplomat, was also concerned during his life with the economic prosperity of the country, supporting the development of crafts, trade and fairs. During his reign, groși and half groși minted in the dinar system were issued, a monetary system introduced in Moldova during the last reign of Petru Aron (1455-1457)...
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
31 August 1989 St., 121 A, MD 2012, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova
