10 Centimes pattern by Borrel

This is a pattern piece from the fevered weeks following the February Revolution of 1848, when the newly proclaimed Second Republic needed coinage fast and solicited competing designs from multiple engravers. Alfred Borrel submitted several proposals; this tin striking is a presentation example, not intended for circulation but for evaluation by the monetary commission. Tin was commonly used for pattern submissions at the Paris Mint precisely because it was cheap, easy to strike, and clearly distinguishable from production alloys.

The Second Republic ultimately adopted different designs, leaving Borrel's proposals unrealized. Maz#1311a places this among the rarer tin variants in the 1848 pattern sequence.