France 1821-W franc
This specimen was lot 944 in Jean Elsen sale 122 (Brussels, September 2014), where it sold for €260 (about US$398 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"FRANCE, Louis XVIII, seconde restauration (1815-1824), AR 1 franc, 1821 W, Lille. Superbe. (kingdom of France, Louis XVIII, second restoration (1815-24), silver franc of 1821, Lille mint. Extremely fine.)"
This issue, from the Lille mint, is a later date of a type struck 1816-24. All francs of Louis XVIII are of this type which, despite nine years of production from nine mints, is not common. It was demonetized in 1869. A complete set of this type comprises 66 date and mintmark combinations, many very rare. The entire production run, 1816-24, totaled about 4.3 million pieces. The production of French five franc pieces in the same period was 104 million.
Recorded mintage: 199,751[2].
Specification: 5 g, 0.900 fine silver, 23 mm diameter, edge lettered DOMINE SALVUM FAC REGEM, designed by Pierre Joseph Tiolier.
Catalog reference: Gad-449, F.206/40.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Gadoury, Victor, Monnaies Françaises, 1789-2019, 24me éd., Monaco: Éditions Victor Gadoury, 2019.
- Guilloteau, Victor, Monnaies Françaises, Colonies 1670-1942 et Metropole 1774-1942, Versailles, 1942.
- [2]Prieur, Michel, and Laurent Schmitt, Le Franc 10: Les Monnaies, Paris: Éditions les Chevau-légers, 2014.
- [1]Philippe Elsen et al., Vente Publique 122: Collection de monnaies chinoises, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils, S. A., 2014.
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