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50 Livres Assignat
| Issuer | République Française (French Revolutionary Government) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1792 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 50 Livres (50 LT) |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is unprinted, showing only the show-through impression of the obverse design in reverse, with the watermark partially visible. A handwritten manuscript notation appears in the upper left corner. |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | A rectangular watermark border composed of a Greek key pattern frames the edge of the assignat, with the text LIBERTÉ ÉGALITÉ / NATION FRANÇAISE on two lines within a rectangular panel. |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
Assignats were not currency in any conventional banking sense — they were bonds backed by seized Church and émigré property (biens nationaux), turned into forced legal tender by a government that had no functioning tax base and couldn't borrow abroad. The 50 Livres denomination sat awkwardly in the middle of the series: large enough to be worth counterfeiting, small enough to circulate widely among tradespeople and municipal authorities. Counterfeiting became catastrophic by late 1792, with British-backed forgeries reportedly flooding the northern departments to destabilize the Republic's finances deliberately.
Tardieu's engraving was among the finer work applied to Revolutionary paper, though the inflation that ultimately destroyed the assignat system made the craftsmanship irrelevant.