Post Your Coins And Medals Connected To The French Revolution

Well - I guess we can fill this thread out a little with post-revolutionary coins that repeat the revolutionary motives

The Hercules motive from the 5 francs coin has been used five more times (during the franc era):
- 1848-49 (5 francs), at the founding of the 2nd republic following the revolution of 1848, when reusing the motive from the 1st republic seemed appropriate after 34 years of restored monarchy.
- 1871-78 (5 francs), now at the founding of the 3rd republic after the franco-prussian war 1870 and fall of the 2nd empire.
- 1965-73 (10 francs), now as a commemoration. It has the same size (37 mm) as the 5 francs coins and same silver content (900/1000).
- 1974-80 (50 francs), continued commemoration but with the increase in silver price forcing a higher nominal value. It is 900/1000 silver but slightly larger (41 mm).
- 1996 (5 francs), single commemorative issue, back to the original 5 francs but in copper-nickel instead of silver and smaller (29 mm).

I like to collect this kind of series of coins, so here are my Hercules coins, one from each of the four "silver periods":

5 francs 1848, Paris (A)
The Hercules motive is the same as on the 1st republic coins, with small differences: The hand of justice held by Lady Republic/Liberty on the left is not covered by a phrygian cap and Lady Justice has a different hair style. Also, the inscription differs; 1848 is the first year that the phrase Liberte egalite is accompanied by Fraternite on a coin.


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5 francs 1871, Paris (A), Camelinat/au trident
Same Hercules motive as 1848 - but this is a rather special coin. It is minted by the communards during the Paris Commune, the revolutionary government that ruled Paris during March-May 1871. Silver found in the Tuileries palace and other government buildings was used and it was the only type of coin minted. The only detail that differs from the French government 5 francs coins is the small trident on the reverse, to the left of the A mint mark at the bottom - that was the symbol used by the Paris mint master, Zephyrin Camelinat. After the uprising had been brutally suppressed, these coins were retracted and most were melted. (As a sidenote, Camelinat lived on to be 91.)


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10 francs 1973
Back to the original Hercules motive, cap and hair style of the revolution.


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50 francs 1979
Same as the 10 francs coin, just valued higher and slightly larger.

Just spotted this thread!

Here's one of my Revolutionary Era coins. It started life as a Two Decimes piece. When the copper coins were doubled in size and weight, the 2-decimes were withdrawn and either re-struck or counterstamped by hand as 1 Decime. On this coin, you can see that 'UN' has been punched over the original 'DEUX', but the attempt to obliterate the 'S' of 'DECIMES' could have been more successful!

Great to see some new contributions!!

Very nice countermarking there, NumisRob! And one of the more unusual varieties of a one centime, with 53 + 36 dots, Dorado, nice to see one of those!

Great new contributions NumisRob and Dorado !

We see here examples of a revolutionary change in the monetary system; from the confusing system of sous and liards and sols and tournois and livres and ecus towards a simple and very logic decimal system. The same transformation happened for units of weight and length.

erafjel : interesting to see a thread in the use of the Hercules motive on French crown-sized silver pieces for almost 2 centuries. Some of the old symbols of the French Revolution have been used in modern times.

The silver 100 Franc coin of the 5th Republic issued in 1988 as part of a series marking the bicentenary of the French Revolution reprised the design of the Angel (Genie) writing the Constitution that first appeared on silver coins of 1791:

great to see new additions, Dorado and NumisRob !

here is a piece in copper, minted in 1793 as test (essai)
(I am not sure, but it could be for the silver 6 livres of 1793, an example of which has been posted on page 1 by erafjel)

Convention, test coin (Essais) for 2 sols, 1793
Obverse: REPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE. In centre of wreath of oak leaves : PIÈCE/ D'ESSAI (not visible in my example)
Reverse: REGNE DE LA LOI Winged angel, between phrygian cap end triangle, wiriting constitution signature DUPRe

The Hercules design was re-used at the revolution of 1848 and so was the Genius design. While Hercules was placed on the silver pieces, the Genius of France got to reside on the gold coins. Like on the Hercules coin, the phrygian cap has been removed from the hand of justice on top of the fasces. Also, the text on the table has changed, it reads: 24-25 FEV 1848. These are the dates for the king's abdication and proclamation of the second republic. The craftsmanship behind that inscription is admirable, as this is before reduction machines came into use for engraving - the coin itself is not that big, and the letters are only 0.6 mm (about 1/40 inch) high!

20 francs 1848, Genie, Paris (A), 900/1000 gold, 21 mm, 6.45 g


I think our Genius has a somewhat heavy-hearted look... Perhaps he finds it unfair that Hercules should get all the girls at every revolution...

@erafjel: very interesting that both Hercule, and Marianne and Genius keep coming back on French coins !

Here I have an other link to 1793 : a copper two sols made during the siege of Mainz (Mayence)

(images from the recent auction where I picked up this piece, I have not made my own pictures yet)
a small piece of copper, not of the best possible quality, but with interesting history

OBV: symbols of Revolution; legend REPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE, 1792 L'AN 2
REV: centre 2 SOLS; legend MONOYE DE SIEGE DE MAYENCE



Mainz, a city in Germany, fits into a bigger idea: France bordered by natural frontiers, the sea (Atlantic and Mediterranean), high mountains (Alps in the East and Pyrennees in the South) and a big river (the Rhine). This was an old idea of cardinal Richelieu (around 1640), but it came back during the French Revolution when military coalitions were formed between Austria, Prussia and England and other countries in order to stop the revolutionary movement in Europe. The first years of the Revolution (1790 ands 1791) France was under attack and actually invaded by Austrian troops.

But after the battle of Valmy (20 September 1792, a major victory of the Republic against the coalition) French borders moved to East bank of the Rhine river so that the heavily fortified city of Mainz (Mayence) became occupied by French troops. The strategic city was an important asset in the control of the Rhine and the coalition made plans to win it back. In April 1793 the city was surrounded by 40,000 Prussian and Austrian troops and a siege was maintained between April and July 1793. The siege money was made to pay the French troops to defend the city. After heavy bombardments by Prussian artillery the French army surrendered. The siege of Mainz was described by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe in his book Die Belagerung von Mainz.



The idea of a country with natural borders was not abandoned. French troops in the North won the battle of Fleurus (Belgium) after which Belgium was incorporated in the French Republic. And because of a series of military successes of a certain Buonaparte, unknown at first but on an ultra-fast track career between 1795 and 1799 , the dream of France bordered by natural frontiers was realized by 1800.