France 1755-A 1/20 ecu

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Jean Elsen sale 163, lot 1891
JE163-1891r.jpg

This specimen was lot 1891 in Jean Elsen sale 163 (Brussels, November 2025), where it sold for €340 (about US$393 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,

"FRANCE, Royaume, Louis XV (1715-1774), AR vingtième d'écu au bandeau, 1755 A, Paris. 2e semestre. D/ T. à g., ceinte d'un bandeau. R/ Écu de France couronné, entre deux rameaux d'olivier. De la plus haute rareté. Semble inédit. Belle patine. (kingdom of France, Louis XV, 1715-1774, silver twentieth écu of the ribbon of 1755, Paris mint, second semester. Obverse: head left, hair tied in a ribbon; reverse: crowned arms of France between two olive branches. Of the utmost rarity, seems to be unpublished, nice patina, Very Fine.)"

This diminutive coin, called a vingtième d'écu au bandeau, was the French equivalent of a half dime. In the coinage system of the ancien régime, the vingtième d'écu = 6 sols. The type was struck 1740-69 but many dates are very rare. This is the only mint listed for 1755.

Recorded mintage: 8,994, an unpriced date[2].

Specification: 1.47 g, 0.917 fine silver, reeded edge, 18-19 mm diameter, this specimen is 1,44 g.

Catalog reference: Dr/2 № 588, Dr/4 № 857, KM 510.1, Dupl. 1684; Gad. 284 (unlisted date); L4L 498 (unlisted date); Clairand 34135 (hors cote).

Source:

  • Clairand, Armand, Monnaies de Louis XV, Le temps de la Stabilité Monetaire, 1726-1774, Paris: Maison Platt, 1996.
  • [2]Droulers, Frédéric, Répertoire General des Monnaies de Louis XIII à Louis XVI (1610-1792), 4e édition. Paris: AFPN, 2009.
  • Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
  • Duplessy, Jean, Les Monnaies Françaises Royales de Hugues Capet à Louis XVI (987-1793), Tome II, 2e édition, Paris: Maison Platt, 1999.
  • Gadoury, Victor, Monnaies Royales Françaises, 1610-1792, 5me éd., Monaco: Éditions Victor Gadoury, 2018.
  • [1]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 163, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2025.

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