1836 12 Roubles Platinum

Specifications

Denomination: 12 roubles
Series: Platinum coinage of Nicholas I
Years of issue: 1836
Weight: 41.41 g
Diameter: 35.75 mm
Edge: Reeded
Mint marks: SP
KM: C-179
Mintage: 11
Key mintages: 11 proofs struck (Bonhams); the '132' figure in broad tables is total rouble face value (11 × 12), not pieces. Native Ural platinum was unrefined — the 0.950 fineness is an approximation.

AI-generated illustration — not a photograph of a genuine coin.

Nicholas I platinum 12-rouble proof · only 11 struck in 1836 · the rarest denomination of Russia's unique platinum coinage.

History

Russia struck the world’s only circulating platinum coinage from 1828 to 1845, using native Ural platinum, in 3, 6, and 12 rouble denominations (Johnson Matthey manufacturing history; Bonhams, accessed 2026-09-16).
The 12-rouble was the largest platinum denomination, struck 1830–1845; Bonhams records the 1836-SP pieces as proofs and the only 12-rouble emission of that year (Bonhams, accessed 2026-09-16).
Bonhams states only 11 proofs were struck in 1836. A frequently cited broad-table figure of ‘132’ is the total face value in roubles (11 × 12), not the number of pieces (Bonhams, accessed 2026-09-16).
The 12-rouble pieces weighed 1.332 troy oz (about 41.4 g), struck from unrefined native Ural platinum (Johnson Matthey, accessed 2026-09-16).

1836-SP proof (Fr. 158, C-179): 11 struck — the key date of the 12-rouble platinum series; the Bonhams specimen carried a tiny ‘C’-like collector’s punch suggesting the Hutten-Czapski / Grand Duke Georgii Mikhailovich provenance (Bonhams, accessed 2026-09-16).

MINTAGE RECONCILIATION: use 11 pieces (Bonhams), not the ‘132’ figure seen in broad mintage tables — that figure is total rouble face value (11 × 12 roubles), not the number of coins struck.
COUNTERFEIT DIAGNOSTIC: no counterfeit die markers from an approved authority (PCGS, NGC, Heritage, Stack’s Bowers, Spink, or Krause) were located during research. Given the extreme rarity and value, professional certification plus non-destructive composition and density testing are prudent for any example.