Russia Bronze Medal 1710 (Novodel middle 19th century) - Capture of Riga, 4 July 1710 - Peter I (1682–1725)

44.19g. 47mm. UNC/UNC. 

Medaliers: Timofey Ivanov (obverse, • Т • I • in truncation); M. Kuchkin (initials М • К • to the left below the cannons on reverse). 

Diakov 32.7 (Ar – R1). 

Obv.: Laureate bust of Peter I facing right, wearing ornate armor with arabesque decorations and a tied ribbon at the back of the wreath. 

Inscription around: 

PETRVS . ALEXII . FIL . D . G . RVSS . IMP . М . DVXMOSCOVIÆ 

(Peter, son of Alexis, by the Grace of God, Emperor of Russia, Grand Duke of Moscow). 

Rev.: Perspective view of the fortified city of Riga under siege, with multiple batteries bombarding the walls. 

Inscription around: 

ʀIɢᴀ • ʀᴇDIᴛ rVssIs ᴀᴘто CᴇʀᴛᴀMIɴᴇ CᴀsᴛʀIs 

(Riga returned to the Russians after a hard-fought siege). 

Below the exergue: 

CAPTA • DIE VIII • IVL • | SV • 

(Captured on the 8th day of July, old style – with erroneous date: 8 instead of 4 July). 

To the left below the cannons: 

М • К • 

(Initials of the medalier M. Kuchkin). 

The medal commemorates the Russian capture of Riga during the Great Northern War. Riga, a major strategic port on the Baltic Sea, had long been under Swedish control. The Russian siege began in June 1710 and ended with the city's surrender on July 4 (old style). The reverse presents a detailed topographic view of the city under fire. Despite the incorrect dating on the medal (July 8), the event marked a significant victory for Peter the Great in his campaign to secure Russian access to the Baltic and to weaken Swedish dominance in the region.