40 Francs Essai

Luxembourg's 40-franc denomination never entered circulation, and this 1967 essai is among the clearest examples of a coinage proposal that died quietly in committee. The Grand Duchy was in the midst of reassessing its monetary relationship with the Belgium-Luxembourg Economic Union during the late 1960s, and several denominations were trialed and shelved as the two countries negotiated parity arrangements. The 40-franc value itself is irregular enough to suggest it was testing a specific transactional need that was ultimately absorbed by existing Belgian coinage.