Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
20 Francs 'Vreneli' Pattern
| Issuer | Swiss Federal Mint (Swissmint) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1897 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Round |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | 20 FR 1897 B |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
The Vreneli design was selected through a public competition in 1895, ultimately won by Fritz Ulysse Girardet — though the female head is widely attributed to have been modeled on a composite ideal rather than any single individual, contrary to the persistent folk claim that a specific Bernese woman sat as the subject. The 1897 date places this firmly in the pattern phase: the definitive circulation issue did not launch until 1897 for trial pieces and 1898 for general production, meaning examples bearing this year exist almost exclusively as Probeprägungen submitted for official approval.
The Fr#500 attribution confirms Frey's classification as a pattern distinct from the adopted type.