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2 Decimes pattern by Lorthior in billon
| Issuer | France |
|---|---|
| Year | 1799 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | VG#831 , Maz#586 , Gad 1789#301 |
| Obverse description | Left-facing draped bust of Minerva wearing a crested Attic helmet adorned with a cockerel finial, her hair flowing in loose curls beneath the visor. The circular legend REPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE runs along the periphery. The engraver's signature LOR. F. appears in small characters in the lower exergual area beneath the truncation. The portrait is rendered in a classical Neoclassical style characteristic of French Directoire and Consulate-era coinage. |
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| Reverse description | Central device comprising a cornucopia and a caduceus crossed diagonally, symbolising prosperity and commerce. Below the crossed emblems appears the mint mark A (Paris Mint). The denomination and date are inscribed in three lines across the field reading 2 / DECIMES / L'AN 8, referencing Year 8 of the French Republican calendar. The composition is simple and unadorned, consistent with the experimental character of this pattern issue. |
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| Additional information |
This is an essai struck during the chaotic monetary reorganization that followed the Revolution, when France was attempting to rationalize its coinage under the Directory and then Consulate. Lorthior was among several engravers and entrepreneurs who submitted competing pattern proposals during this period — few were adopted, and most survive in very small numbers. The billon composition itself reflects the transitional moment: the new decimal system demanded copper for subsidiary coinage, but old habits and available metal dies kept billon in play through the final years of the 1790s.