1 euro cent des jeunes du pays du Freinet Plan de La Tour, Fisac, Garde Freinet [83]

This piece belongs to the wave of locally issued "euro anticipation" tokens produced by French municipalities and regional associations in the run-up to the January 1999 euro introduction. Hundreds of French towns and organizations struck these pieces through 1998, partly as civic promotion and partly as genuine small-change substitutes during the transitional uncertainty. The Pays du Freinet — a rural massif community in the Var département centered on La Garde-Freinet — issued this through a youth association, which was a common sponsorship vehicle for bypassing the stricter commercial restrictions on private currency issuance.

At 9.1g and 26mm, the piece substantially exceeds the official euro cent specifications that took effect in 2002, which tells you something about the artisanal production context.