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1/4 Cent
| Issuer | French Indochina |
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| Year | 1941-1944 |
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| Composition | Zinc |
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| Obverse description | The obverse features a central round perforation flanked symmetrically by two stylised grain or rice stalks in the left and right fields, evoking the agricultural character of the colony. The legend ETAT FRANÇAIS is inscribed in two lines across the upper field, with INDOCHINE arcing along the lower field. The date appears at the bottom, below INDOCHINE, while a horizontal rule separates the upper inscription from the central hole area. The design is austere and typographic, characteristic of the Vichy-era French State colonial issues. |
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| Reverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
Zinc replaced bronze for this denomination during the Japanese occupation of Indochina, when strategic metals were redirected entirely toward the war effort. The Vichy French colonial administration, operating under Japanese sufferance, continued issuing coinage but with drastically reduced material quality. Zinc was prone to corrosion in the tropical humidity of Southeast Asia, and surviving examples in any condition above heavily patinated are genuinely uncommon — the climate did more damage than circulation ever could.