France 1808-W 10 centimes

from the Mountain Groan Collection

The specimen shown is one of a type struck 1807-10 during the regime of the Emperor Napoleon. This Lille mint issue is a somewhat better date, or would be if it were genuine. Eight other mints struck this type.

This type is the only billon issue of the decimal series. It failed for the same reason as the billon issues of Louis XV failed: rampant counterfeiting and rejection by the populace. The authors of Le Franc IX^[1] note, "Ce type est sans contestation possible le plus falsifié de l'histoire monétaire moderne de la France (This type is without doubt the most counterfeited in the modern history of France)." They comment that one out of three examples seen are fakes but that they are collectible nonetheless. This fake is of above average quality but the weak date gives it away.

Only high grade specimens show a silver look. Circulated examples show the dark greenish gray typical of base silver coins.

Recorded mintage: 1,575,410^[1], 1,576,000^[2].

Specification: billon (20% silver, 80% copper), 2 g, 18 mm diameter.

Catalog reference: F.130.9, KM 676.1.

Source:

^[2]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.
^[1]Prieur, Michel, and Laurent Schmitt, Le Franc 10: Les Monnaies, Paris: Éditions les Chevau-légers, 2014.

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France 1808-W 10 centimes

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