France 1921 2 francs
This type, known as "Chambres de Commerce," superseded the "Semeuse" design of 1898-1920. It was demonetized in 1949. The "Chambres de Commerce" also appeared on contemporary fifty centimes and one franc coins. Altho issued by the Paris mint, technically this type is not a coin but a token issued by the national Chamber of Commerce, not the government. This enabled the politicians to postpone acknowledging the obvious, that the inflation of World War One had reduced the value of the franc to one-fifth of its former level and there was no going back. Finally, president Poincaré officially devalued the franc and ordered the issue of new coin types. The dates 1921-25 are common, 1920 and 1926 are scarce and 1927 is rare.
Recorded mintage: 14,362,786 for 1920-21.
Specification: 8 g, aluminum bronze, 27 mm diameter, reeded edge, copied from a 19th century medal designed by François Domard (1792-1858).
Catalog reference: F.267/3, KM 877.
- Gadoury, Victor, Monnaies Françaises, 1789-2019, 24me éd., Monaco: Éditions Victor Gadoury, 2019.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Prieur, Michel, and Laurent Schmitt, Le Franc 10: Les Monnaies, Paris: Éditions les Chevau-légers, 2014.
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