Syria in 1941 was under Vichy French administration, and the brief window between the armistice of June 1940 and the Allied invasion of June 1941 created acute material shortages that forced experimental coinage proposals throughout French-controlled territories. This piece belongs to that scramble — aluminium trials produced when nickel and copper were diverted to the German war machine under armistice terms. The "thick" designation distinguishes it from companion flans tested at reduced depth, suggesting the Beirut or Paris mint ran multiple planchet specifications before the Free French takeover rendered the entire programme moot.
Syria in 1941 was under Vichy French administration, and the brief window between the armistice of June 1940 and the Allied invasion of June 1941 created acute material shortages that forced experimental coinage proposals throughout French-controlled territories. This piece belongs to that scramble — aluminium trials produced when nickel and copper were diverted to the German war machine under armistice terms. The "thick" designation distinguishes it from companion flans tested at reduced depth, suggesting the Beirut or Paris mint ran multiple planchet specifications before the Free French takeover rendered the entire programme moot.