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Russian Hoodlums Knock Ruble Off Its Pedestal

ProGorod / pg11.ru

In an incident too metaphorically perfect to make up, a monument to Russia’s currency has been sent tumbling to Earth in the northern Russian town of Syktyvkar.

In 2015 the Central Bank’s branch in the republic of Komi unveiled the metal and glass sculpture of the currency symbol, a Cyrillic letter “R,” which is identical in shape to the Latin letter “P,” with a horizontal score through it.

The statue “shattered in pieces” when it fell, the local news website pg11.ru reported, citing a witness.

Local police are examining security camera footage, its press service told the Moskva Radio station.

“The statue has been dismantled and taken away,” Syktyvkar Interior Ministry spokeswoman Vera Zheleztsova was quoted as saying.

The incident comes the same month new U.S. sanctions and a spike in the Syrian conflict sent the ruble to its lowest levels since 2016, before recovering some ground.

The ruble is currently trading at 62.66 against the U.S. dollar.

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