500 Francs - type 1842

The type 1842 500 Francs was among the earliest high-denomination notes to emerge from the Banque de France's post-Revolutionary consolidation of note design, engraved in part by Jacques-Jean Barre, who simultaneously held the post of chief engraver at the Paris Mint. Pannemaker was a prolific engraver of banknote vignettes across multiple European issues of the mid-nineteenth century, and Harang — who worked under the professional name Cabasson — contributed to several Banque de France series during this period.

Five hundred francs represented a substantial sum in 1840s France, placing these notes almost entirely in commercial and banking hands rather than general circulation. The nineteen-year type run, from 1844 to 1863, is long by French standards of the period, suggesting the plates held up well and no significant security concern forced an early replacement.