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1000 Francs CFA Pope John Paul II - Totus Tuus

Issuer Benin (1975-date)
Year 2014
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Currency CFA Franc (1945-date)
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Obverse script Latin
Obverse lettering REPUBLIQUE DU BENIN FRATERNITE JUSTICE TRAVAIL 1000 FRANCS CFA
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Additional information

Issued under Benin's arrangement with the Monnaie de Paris, this belongs to a sprawling category of commemorative silver struck for francophone African states that hold no meaningful connection to the subject honored. Benin has no Catholic majority, no papal visit on record, and no particular diplomatic tie to the Vatican that would explain the choice. The series exists entirely as a revenue instrument — collector-market pieces sold abroad, never intended for domestic circulation.

"Totus Tuus" was the personal motto John Paul II adopted from the writings of Saint Louis de Montfort, a phrase he carried from his early priestly years in occupied Poland through to his pontificate.

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