France 1844-B franc
This specimen was lot 1122 in Sincona sale 76 (Zürich, May 2022), where it sold for 375 CHF (about US$455 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"FRANCE | Kingdom. Louis Philippe, 1830-1848. 1 Franc 1844 B, Rouen. Sehr selten in dieser Erhaltung. Vorzüglich-FDC. NGC AU58. (kingdom of France, Louis Philippe, 1830-48, one franc of 1844, Rouen mint. Very rare in this condition, Extremely fine-uncirculated.)"
Le Franc reports three known of this date. This design, by Domard, replaced the Tiolier bust type struck 1831 only. It was demonetized in 1869. A complete set of this type comprises 118 date and mintmark combinations, many very rare. The entire production run, 1832-48, totaled about 18.1 million pieces. The production of French five franc pieces in the same period was 289 million.
Recorded mintage: 44,728.
Specification: 23 mm diameter, 5 grams, 0.900 fine silver, reeded edge. Designed by Joseph François Domard, 1792-1858. This specimen is 5.05 g.
Catalog reference: F.210/100, KM 748, Gadoury 453.
- 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.
- Prieur, Michel, and Laurent Schmitt, Le Franc 10: Les Monnaies, Paris: Éditions les Chevau-légers, 2014.
- [1]Richter, Jürg, SINCONA Auction 76, The Annemarie and Gerd Köhlmoos Collection, Zürich: SINCONA AG, 2022.
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