10 Francs - Muhammad VIII Essai

Essai pieces from the French Protectorate of Tunisia were struck in limited numbers as pattern submissions and presentation pieces, never entering general circulation. Muhammad VIII al-Amin was installed as Bey of Tunis by the French in 1943, partly because his predecessor Muhammad VII had been seen as too accommodating to the Axis presence during the North African campaign — a political calculation that made the 1945 essai issues, struck just as the protectorate reasserted administrative control post-liberation, something of a statement coin for the restored French administration.