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20 Francs pattern of Turin
| Issuer | Monnaie de Paris |
|---|---|
| Year | 1929 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 17.75 g |
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| Obverse description | Laureate and draped bust of Marianne, personification of the French Republic, facing right, wearing a wreath of laurel and olive leaves over flowing hair rendered in fine relief. The engraver's signature P.TURIN appears in small incuse letters at the base of the truncation. The circular legend REPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE frames the effigy, flanked by a finely beaded inner border running the full circumference of the coin. The portrait exhibits the restrained Art Deco aesthetic characteristic of Turin's work, with a strong classical profile and precisely modelled facial features. |
|---|---|
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| Obverse lettering | REPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE P.TURIN (Translation: French Republic) |
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| Additional information |
The Turin pattern of 1929 was the work of Joseph Turin, chief engraver at the Monnaie de Paris from 1930 and already its dominant artistic force through the late 1920s. This piece was part of a broader competition to redesign French circulating coinage following years of postwar monetary instability — the franc had lost roughly 80% of its prewar value by the mid-1920s, and the Poincaré stabilization of 1928 created both the political will and the practical need for a new coinage. Turin's 20 Francs design ultimately lost to other priorities; France never issued a circulating 20 Franc coin in this period.
Aluminum bronze was the material of the moment — lighter and cheaper than gold, it had already been adopted for the 1929 reforming of smaller denominations.