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*The Provisional Government was created in 1917 to funciton as the ruling body of Russia immediately after Czar Nicholas II abdicated his throne in March of 1917. Although its effective ruling existence lasted only 8 months, from March 1917 to November 1917, the Provisional Government did leave its mark on Russian history and left behind the banknotes it printed as remnants of the short-lived government.
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The symbol of the Provisional Government became the provisional eagle, which reflects a number of important changes from the Imperial Russian eagle that had dominated as the symbol of Imperial Russia for over 300 years. The provisional double-headed eagle at the top is very similar to the double-headed eagle used by the Imperial Government, but lacks four key features:
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1. The 3 crowns seen on the Imperial eagle have been removed.
2. The chest plate with St. George slaying the dragon on the Imperial eagle has been removed.
3. The orb and sceptre seen in the claws of the Imperial eagle have been removed.
4. The family coats of arms seen on the sings of the Imperial eagle have been removed. The events that followed the October Revolution of 1917 gave way to the eventual collapse of the Provisional Government and the rise of the Soviet Union.
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The Provisional eagle is also situated above an image of the Duma, the government building which was the seat of power of the Provisional Government. The Duma existed under Imperial Russian rule, but the extent of its power was controlled.
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The banknotes printed by the Provisional Government reflect the tumultuous times in which they were printed - size, color, designs, and denominations appear scattered and unorganized, and 4 notes exist as specimens only since their introduction into circulation was prevented by the October Revolution of 1917. Each note has a lot of unique features and a lot of history behind them that reflect the tumultuous events of the time, which are discussed for each note on the left hand navigation menu.
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