Congo 1965 20 francs
The first specimen was lot 3455 in Goldberg sale 62 (Beverly Hills, February 2010), where it sold for $264.50. The catalog description[1] noted, "Congo (Republic). 20 Francs, 1965. Uniformed bust of President Joseph Kasavubu. Reverse: Crossed palm trees. Choice Brilliant Proof." This specimen was part of lot 32654 in Heritage sale 3064 (Chicago, April 2018), which sold for $2,400. The catalog description[2] noted, "Five-Piece Uncertified gold Proof Set 1965. Includes 10, 20, 25, 50, and 100 Francs, Total AGW 1.9134 oz. Among the first 3,000 proof sets struck to display the country's first gold coinage, this pleasant selection of coins features the bust of President Kasa-Vubu on the obverse, and a variety of motifs on the reverses. All coins are Gem Proof as expected, though some very light handling marks are to be noted and some die rust appears around 1 and 2 o'clock on the 50 Francs piece. Comes with original case of issue." Struck to the standard of the obsolete French twenty francs. A similar design was used for a commemorative gold ten, twenty-five, fifty and one hundred francs. Congo became Zaire then reverted to Congo in 1997 in the midst of a multi-sided civil war which still continues.
Recorded mintage: estimated 3,000.
Specification: 6.45 g, 0.900 fine gold, .1867 troy oz AGW.
Catalog reference: Fr-4; KM-3, KM-PS1 (set).
- Friedberg, Arthur L. and Ira S. Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World, From Ancient Times to the Present, 9th ed., Clifton, NJ: Coin and Currency Institute, 2017.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Goldberg, Ira, and Larry Goldberg, Goldberg Sale 62: the Pre-Long Beach Sale, Beverly Hills: Goldberg Coins and Collectibles, 2011.
- [2]Cristiano Bierrenbach and Warren Tucker, Heritage World Coin Auction 3064, featuring the Doug Robins Collection of Canadian Tokens, Dallas, TX: Heritage Auction Galleries, 2018.
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