Catalog
3000 Francs CFA Martin Luther King
| Issuer | Central African Republic |
|---|---|
| Year | 1970 |
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| Composition | Gold (.900) |
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| Obverse description | Bare-headed left-facing effigy of President Jean-Bedel Bokassa occupies the central field, rendered in high relief with finely detailed facial features. The upper legend arcs across the obverse reading REPUBLIQUE CENTRAFRICAINE followed by 10e ANNIVERSAIRE DE L'INDEPENDANCE, flanked by the dates 1960 and 1970. Below the portrait, the name JEAN BEDEL BOKASSA is inscribed, with the national motto UNITE - TRAVAIL - DIGNITE (Unity, Work, Dignity) arranged around the lower field. Decorative motifs resembling stylized hand-print patterns appear symmetrically in the left and right fields, serving as ornamental borders to the central effigy. |
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| Edge | Reeded |
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| Additional information |
The Central African Republic issued this piece in 1970, just two years after King's assassination in Memphis, making it one of the earliest foreign gold commemoratives struck in his honor. The timing placed it squarely within a broader wave of post-colonial African nations using commemorative coinage as both diplomatic signaling and hard-currency generation — the coins were rarely intended for domestic circulation and were sold primarily to Western collector markets through agents and coin fairs.
The issuing authority was the Banque Centrale des États de l'Afrique Centrale. KM#2 confirms this as among the very first coin types assigned to the republic's independent numismatic program.