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5 Francs
| Issuer | Canton of Geneva |
|---|---|
| Year | 1848 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Milled |
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| Obverse description | The obverse displays the quartered arms of the Republic and Canton of Geneva within a heraldic shield occupying the central field: the dexter half bears the Genevan eagle displayed, while the sinister half features a key — traditional emblems of the city. Above the shield, a radiant sun emits stylized rays, at its centre the Christogram 'IHS' within a small cartouche, referencing the Reformation motto. The circular legend, reading POST · TENEBRAS · LUX ·, is distributed around the shield in the lower arc, with POST · TENEBRAS to the left and LUX · to the right, separated by raised dots. The design is framed by a fine toothed border. |
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| Mintage | 1848 - - 1,176 |
| Additional information |
Geneva's 1848 five franc piece was struck in the same year the canton adopted its radical new constitution, which dramatically expanded suffrage and restructured cantonal government following popular pressure tied to the broader revolutionary wave sweeping Europe that spring. The timing was not coincidental — the issue functioned partly as an assertion of cantonal monetary authority at precisely the moment the Swiss Confederation itself was consolidating federal power under the new 1848 federal constitution, which would soon curtail the independent coinage rights the cantons had long exercised.
This is among the final emissions Geneva would strike as a genuinely autonomous monetary actor. Federal coinage law effectively ended cantonal silver issues within a few years.