France 1793-BB 30 sols

From CoinVarieties
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Jean Elsen sale 162, lot 1008
JE162-1008r.jpg

This specimen was lot 1008 in Jean Elsen sale 162 (Brussels, June 2025), where it sold for €420 (about US$582 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,

"FRANCE, Constitution (1791-1792), AR 30 sols, 1793 BB, an 5, Strasbourg. Type FRANÇAIS. D/ T. nue à g., les cheveux noués par un ruban. R/ Génie inscrivant la constitution sur une table. Très rare. Griffes au revers. (France, constitution, 1791-92, silver thirty sols of 1793, year 5, Strasbourg mint, type 'FRANÇAIS'. Obverse: bare bust to left, hair tied with a ribbon; reverse: the Genius of France inscribes the Constitution on a tablet. Very rare, reverse scratches, Fine.)"

Altho the French Revolution famously began with the fall of the Bastille in June 1789, the upheaval was not immediately reflected in the coinage, which continued to be issued using the designs of the ancien régime. In 1791, the first "constitutional" coins appeared, including 3 deniers (= 1 liard), 6 deniers (= 2 liards), 12 deniers (= 1 sol), 2 sols, 15 sols (= 1/8 écu) and 30 sols. This type, with the obverse legend "FRANÇAIS", was struck only at Strasbourg 1791-93. The other mints used "FRANÇOIS". It passed for one quarter écu and was intended for soldiers' pay.

Recorded mintage: unknown but scarce.

Specification: 9.98 g, 0.666 fine silver, 28 mm diameter, decorated edge, this specimen 9,69 g.

Catalog reference: KM 607.1, Dupl. 1720; Gad-38.

Sources:

  • Duplessy, Jean, Les Monnaies Françaises Royales de Hugues Capet à Louis XVI (987-1793), Tome II, 2e édition, Paris: Maison Platt, 1999.
  • Gadoury, Victor, Monnaies Françaises, 1789-2019, 24me éd., Monaco: Éditions Victor Gadoury, 2019.
  • Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
  • [1]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 162: Collection Jacques Druart, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2025.

Link to:

Retrieved from "https://coinvarieties.com/index.php?title=France_1793-BB_30_sols&oldid=568198"