5 Francs - Napoleon III pattern of Bescher

This piece belongs to a competitive design trial conducted in 1853 as the newly proclaimed Second Empire sought coinage worthy of Napoleon III's imperial pretensions. Bescher was among several artists and engravers invited to submit pattern proposals before the commission was ultimately awarded. The winning design went to Jacques-Jean Barre, whose work defined French coinage for the remainder of the Empire.

Patterns of this trial are institutionally rare — produced in strictly controlled numbers by the Monnaie de Paris for evaluation purposes and never released to circulation.