100 Piastres

The Banque de l'Indo-Chine's 100 Piastres series printed by the Banque de France represents one of the more technically accomplished colonial issues of the interwar period — Ruffe and Gaspérini were both staff engravers at the Banque de France whose work appeared across multiple sovereign and colonial issues simultaneously. Bellery-Desfontaines, primarily known as a poster and decorative arts illustrator, died in 1909, meaning his designs were adapted posthumously from earlier artwork rather than commissioned specifically for this note.

The piastre at this date was still pegged to the French franc at a fixed rate set in 1895 — a peg that would cause serious economic distortions when France devalued in the 1930s.