France 1806-L franc
This specimen was lot 1262 in Jean Elsen sale 145 (Brussels, September 2020), where it sold for €320 (about US$456 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"FRANCE, Napoléon Ier (1804-1814), AR 1 franc, 1806L, Bayonne. Petites taches. presque Superbe. (empire of France, Napoleon I, 1804-14, silver one franc of 1806, Bayonne mint. Minor stains, about Extremely Fine.)"
This issue, from the Bayonne mint, is the second most common issue of a type struck 1806-07 only. A complete set of this type comprises 19 date and mintmark combinations, all rare except the 1806-A. In 1806 the French revolutionary calendar was dropped and normal AD dating resumed.
Recorded mintage: 252,676, the second most common date after 1806-A.
Specification: 23 mm diameter, 5 grams, .900 fine silver, decorated edge. Designed by Pierre Joseph Tiolier, 1763-1819.
Catalog reference: F.302/5, Gad-444, KM 672.
- Gadoury, Victor, Monnaies Françaises, 1789-2011, 20me éd., Monaco: Éditions Victor Gadoury, 2011.
- Prieur, Michel, and Laurent Schmitt, Le Franc 10: Les Monnaies, Paris: Éditions les Chevau-légers, 2014.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 145, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2020.
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