10 Cents Pattern

The Banque de l'Indochine's aluminium pattern issues of 1945 emerged from one of the most chaotic administrative moments in French colonial history. Japan had seized direct control of Indochina from the Vichy French administration in March of that year — the so-called coup de force of 9 March — effectively ending French monetary authority in the region overnight. These patterns were exploratory strikes produced under circumstances where it was genuinely unclear who would govern the territory, or what currency system would survive the war's end.

Lec#183b distinguishes this from related aluminium trials by die characteristics documented in Lecompte's reference work on Indochinese coinage. Few were struck.