France AN13-H 1/4 franc

Stack's Bowers 2025 NYINC sale, lot 34202

This specimen was lot 34202 in Stack's Bowers NYINC sale (New York, January 2025), where it sold for $1,560. The catalog description^[1] noted, "FRANCE. Empire. Quart de Franc (1/4 Franc), Year 13/2-H (1804/5). La Rochelle Mint. Napoleon I. PCGS MS-64. The only representative of the date and mint in the PCGS census, this near-Gem stunner boasts an attractive and inviting overall appearance, with a particularly attractive burnished iridescence augmenting the devices on the obverse. Despite the paltry listed output, Margolis does note that the '...mintage [is] believed [to be] considerably higher than the official figure.' From the Richard Margolis Collection." This tiny coin was struck at La Rochelle under the régime of the emperor Napoleon. It is a scarce date of a short-lived type (AN 12-14) that remains scarce today. The date reflects a ten year experiment of using the revolutionary calendar (AN 4-14) which set 1789 as year 1.

The quarter-francs of Napoleon ran thru a number of types, none of which are common (catalog numbers taken from Le Franc 10):

• F.157: Bonaparte Premier Consul (AN 12 only, 323,000 struck for the type)
• F.158: Napoleon Emperor, revolutionary calendar (AN 12-14, 519,000 struck for the type)
• F.159: Napoleon Emperor, Gregorian calendar (1806-07, 112,000 struck for the type)
• F.160: Napoleon Emperor, "Negro head" (1807-A only, 41,000 struck)
• F.161: Napoleon Emperor, laureate head, "République Française" on reverse (1807-08, 23,000 struck for the type)
• F.162: Napoleon Emperor, laureate head, "Empire Français" on reverse (1809-A only, 34,000 struck for the type)

Recorded mintage: 2,738^[2].

Specification: 1.25 g, 0.900 fine silver, 15 mm diameter, plain edge. Designed by Pierre Joseph Tiolier, 1763-1819.

Catalog reference: KM-654.4; Gad-346; F.158/10.

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, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 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, January 2025 NYINC Showcase Auction, featuring the Richard Margolis Collection, Part III, and the Richard August Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2024.

Links to:

• An 12-A ¼ franc, Premier Consul
• AN 12-BB ¼ franc, Premier Consul
• AN 12-I ¼ franc, Premier Consul
• AN 12-MA ¼ franc, Premier Consul
• An 12-H ¼ franc, Empereur
• An 12-I ¼ franc, Empereur
• An 12-K ¼ franc, Empereur
• An 12-T ¼ franc, Empereur
• An 12-T ¼ franc, Premier Consul
• An 13-A ¼ franc
• An 13-BB ¼ franc
• An 13-I ¼ franc
• An 13-L ¼ franc
• An 13-M ¼ franc
• An 13-MA ¼ franc
• An 13-T ¼ franc
• An 13-U ¼ franc
• An 13-A ½ franc
• An 13-BB ½ franc
• An 13-D ½ franc
• An 13-H ½ franc
• An 13-I ½ franc
• An 13-K ½ franc
• An 13-L ½ franc
• An 13-M ½ franc
• An 13-MA ½ franc
• An 13-T ½ franc
• An 13-A franc
• An 13-B franc
• An 13-BB franc
• An 13-D franc
• An 13-G franc
• An 13-H franc
• An 13-I franc
• An 13-Q franc
• An 13-U franc
• An 13-W franc
• An 13-A 2 francs
• An 13-BB 2 francs
• An 13-G 2 francs
• An 13-H 2 francs
• An 13-I 2 francs
• An 13-K 2 francs
• An 13-L 2 francs
• An 13-M 2 francs
• An 13-Q 2 francs
• An 13-T 2 francs
• An 13-U 2 francs
• An 13-A 5 francs
• An 13-B 5 francs
• An 13-BB 5 francs
• An 13-D 5 francs
• An 13-G 5 francs
• An 13-H 5 francs
• An 13-I 5 francs
• An 13-K 5 francs
• An 13-L 5 francs
• An 13-M 5 francs
• An 13-Q 5 francs
• An 13-T 5 francs
• An 13-U 5 francs
• An 13-W 5 francs
• An 13-A 20 francs d'or
• An 13-I 20 francs d'or
• An 13-Q 20 francs d'or
• An 13-T 20 francs d'or
• An 13-A 40 francs d'or
• Coins and currency dated 1804