Railroads in the Old Russia

[Pierre Tavlitzki]

In the 1830s, the marvel of the time is the railway. Of course, engineers are trying to establish it in Russia. Tsar Nicolas I was reluctant but eventually authorized to build a 40 km line connecting St. Petersburg to the imperial summer residence, Tsarskoe Selo. This line was made in 1836.

What could we still find at auction concerning such a project?

We have the shares, which are the illustrated remains of the capitalization.

A share issued in 1853 by the company operating that line is for sale on November 14 in Wiesbaden by HWPH (Historisches Wertpapierhaus AG), an auction house that specializes in this category of document and whose catalog provides many useful details for the history of the industry.

Only 6 copies in good condition of this issue are recorded. This one, despite having been folded in quarters, is one of the best. On this sheet of 35 x 24 cm, we see the image of a train rolling through the countryside and a text in Russian and French. The nominal value is 60 silver rubles. It is presented with a vignette, also illustrated by a train. The starting bid is set at 9 K €.

The announcement of the sale, with a picture of the share is "shared" by AuctionPublicity.

[Pierre Tavlitzki]

This lot was sold at its starting price: 9 K€.