France 1792-A 1/2 ecu

from the Mountain Groan Collection

This half écu was issued in Paris during the reign of Louis XVI. The mintages 1775-1783 are mostly small but 1790-A and 1791-A are the most common dates. This, the final date, is somewhat scarce. The seeming stability of the type disguised the ever more violent convulsions of the French Revolution, until in 1793 the king was executed and his portrait removed from the coinage.

Recorded mintage: 92,000^[1].

Specification: Silver, 0.917 fine, 14.74 g, 30.5 mm diameter.

Design:

Obverse: uniformed and peruked bust of Louis XVI facing left, legend LUD XVI D. G. FR. ET NAV. REX. (Louis XVI, by the grace of God, king of France and Navarre).
Reverse: oval arms of France, crowned, with olive branches around, legend SIT NOMEN DOMINI BENEDICTUM 1789. Edge engraved, "DOMINE SALVUM FAC REGEM," Latin for "God save the king." The mintmark ("A" for Paris) is at the bottom, between "DOMINI" and "BENEDICTUM."

Catalog reference: Dr/4 № 885, Dr/2 № 618, KM 562.1.

Source:

^[1]Droulers, Frédéric, Répertoire General des Monnaies de Louis XIII à Louis XVI (1610-1792), 2nd édition. Paris: AFPN, 1998.
Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.

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France 1792-A 1/2 ecu

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