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500 Échantillon type RAVEL Francs
| Issuer | Banque de France |
|---|---|
| Year | 1992-2001 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 153 x 80 mm |
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| Obverse description | Central vignette carries a portrait of Maurice Ravel (1875–1937), French composer, accompanied by an intaglio-printed violin and a musical note motif. The word ÉCHANTILLON appears as an overprint across the face, with the zeroed serial number 000 in the usual serial positions. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Reverse displays a tonal underprint in blue-green hues with a ghosted portrait vignette visible through the guilloche background. The ÉCHANTILLON overprint and the denomination numeral 500 are printed in intaglio along the lower margin and vertical right border. |
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| Comments |
The "Échantillon" designation marks this as a specimen note — produced by the Banque de France's own printing works at Chamalières specifically for training cashiers and bank staff to recognize the genuine 500 Francs Ravel series. Échantillon specimens were distributed to financial institutions throughout France and were never legal tender at any point.
The Ravel 500 was the last French 500 Franc note before the franc was retired in favor of the euro, with franc banknotes ceasing to be legal tender on 17 February 2002. Training specimens from this series surface with some regularity, as distribution was fairly broad, but complete uncut sheets remain genuinely uncommon.