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50 Francs - Cérès type 1933
| Issuer | Banque de France |
|---|---|
| Year | 1934-1937 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | To the left, a classical bust of Cérès (goddess of agriculture) rendered in intaglio, with a wheat-wreathed coiffure. To the right, a reclining allegorical statue set against a formal garden vignette evoking the Gardens of Versailles. The denomination "50" appears in large numerals at each corner, with the issuer's name arched across the upper field. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
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| Reverse lettering | 50 | BANQUE DE FRANCE | 50 L'ART 139 DU CODE PÉNAL PUNIT DES TRAVAUX FORCÉS CEUX QUI AURONT CONTREFAIT OU FALSIFIÉ LES BILLETS DE BANQUES AUTORISÉS PAR LA LOI, AINSI QUE CEUX QUI AURONT FAIT USAGE DE CES BILLETS CONTREFAITS OU FALSIFIÉS. |
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| Comments |
The Cérès 50 Francs ran through most of the mid-1930s, a period when the Banque de France was under considerable political pressure as successive governments wrestled with whether to follow Britain and the United States off the gold standard. France held out — stubbornly, many economists would later argue — until the Blum government finally devalued the franc in September 1936. Notes of this type were in active circulation throughout that entire crisis.
Serveau handled both design and engraving, an uncommon pairing. Deloche's involvement in the engraving suggests a division of labor on the intaglio work that isn't fully documented in Banque de France records.