Catalog
5 Francs Belgium - Princess Mathilde and Princess Eleonore
| Issuer | Banque Centrale du Congo |
|---|---|
| Year | 1999 |
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| Orientation | Medal alignment ↑↑ |
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| Obverse description | Central device features a bold lion's head facing left in high relief, set within a recessed circular inner field. A raised annular border separates the inner field from the outer rim, which bears the circular legend BANQUE CENTRALE at top and 5 FRANCS at base, flanked by four five-pointed stars. The intermediate ring carries the inscription REPUBLIQUE DEMOCRATIQUE DU CONGO, and the date 19 99 appears split across the lower left and right of the outer border. |
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| Obverse lettering | BANQUE CENTRALE REPUBLIQUE DEMOCRATIQUE 19 99 DU CONGO 5 FRANCS |
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| Additional information |
This piece belongs to a peculiar category of legal tender issued for the Democratic Republic of the Congo — coins struck nominally under Congolese authority but designed and minted almost entirely for the international collector market, generating hard currency revenue during a period of catastrophic civil war. By 1999, the DRC was in the depths of the Second Congo War, with multiple foreign armies operating on its soil and the Kinshasa government controlling little beyond the capital. Coins of this type never meaningfully circulated.
The Belgian royal family connection reflects the issuing arrangement rather than any sovereignty claim — Belgian commercial minting interests were heavily involved in producing these collector-targeted issues throughout the late 1990s.