France 1843-A 1/4 franc
This specimen was lot 74540 in Stack's Bowers Collectors Choice sale (Costa Mesa, CA, November 2022), where it sold for $120. The catalog description[1] noted, "FRANCE. 1/4 Franc, 1843-A. Paris Mint. Louis Philippe I. NGC MS-65. Mature portrait type. A bright white Gem with full mint brilliance." This issue, from the Paris mint, is a common date of a type struck 1832-48. It was replaced in 1845 by a twenty-five centimes piece (F.167) and demonetized in 1852. Le Franc[2] notes 108 dates for the type, some very rare. By this period, the government had closed all but five mints: Paris ("A"), Rouen ("B"), Strasbourg ("BB"), Bordeaux ("K") and Lille ("W").
Recorded mintage: 478,024[2], common.
Specification: 1.25 g, 0.900 fine silver, 15 mm diameter, plain edge. Designed by Joseph François Domard, 1792-1858.
Catalog reference: F.166/96, KM-740.1; Gad-355.
- 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.
- [2]Prieur, Michel, and Laurent Schmitt, Le Franc 10: Les Monnaies, Paris: Éditions les Chevau-légers, 2014.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The November 2022 Collectors Choice Ancient & World Coins Auction, Featuring the Pat Johnson Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2022.
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