France 1974 50 francs

from the Mountain Groan Collection

Stack's Bowers ANA sale, part of lot 42201

This specimen is from a type struck at the Paris mint 1974-80. The mint's attempt to circulate a silver five francs in 1960-65 having proved a failure, they tried again with a silver ten francs which was also massively hoarded. This fifty francs was the third attempt, also a failure as a circulating coin. The coin is unknown in circulated condition tho bumps, scratches and hairlines are common. The design is a near clone of the Union et Force five francs minted in during the first Republic of France. The second specimen was part of lot 42201 in Stack's Bowers ANA sale (Chicago, August 2024), where it sold for $19,200. The catalog description^[1] noted,

"FRANCE. Gold Piefort Proof Set (10 Pieces), 1974-79. Paris Mint. All NGC Certified. A complete denominational set of gold Piefort issues, including every denomination issued in 1974 as well as a single 1979 2 Francs (as none were issued in 1974). These Piefort issues are elusive and relatively low mintage, with some in the double digits, and as such this presents a RARE opportunity to acquire a complete set. 1) Gold 50 Francs Piefort, 1974. NGC PROOF-64 Ultra Cameo."

Recorded mintage: 4,298,811 plus 241 in gold.

Specification: 30 g, 0.900 fine silver, 41 mm diameter, .868 troy oz ASW, decorated edge, after a design by Augustin Dupré (1748-1833).

Catalog reference: F.427/2, KM 941.1, KM P510 (struck in gold); GEM-223.P2.

Source:

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.
^[1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, August 2024 Global Showcase Auction, World & Ancient Coins, featuring The Emilio M. Ortiz Collection, The Richard Margolis Collection and The Rutherford Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2024.

Link to:

France 1974 50 francs

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