1500 Francs CFA Enthronement

Benin's modern commemorative gold program operates through the Monnaie de Paris under licensing arrangements common to many Francophone West African states — the coins are legal tender in name but produced entirely for the collector market, never intended to circulate. At 0.50 g, this is among the smallest gold denominations commercially issued anywhere, a format driven by the need to offer gold at an accessible price point rather than by any monetary logic. The "Enthronement" subject references traditional Fon or Yoruba royal ceremonial practice, though Benin has functioned as a Marxist-to-republican state since 1972 with no reigning monarchy.