French Union Francs - Coin Community Forum

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Author	Replies: 7 / Views: 1,218
coincollector1628 New Member United States 45 Posts	Posted 10/27/2012 05:58 am Hi all. Does anyone have any information about the former French Union and their coins? I am trying to put together a set of aluminum 1 Francs, but I cant seem to find any info about the history of the union. I find the coins interesting because the territories were spread all over the world and all of the coins share a common obverse. Even after the union was dissolved they continued to use the shared obverse minus the inscription "Union Francaise". So far I have: Cameroon Comoros (not French Union) French Equatorial Africa French West Africa Madagascar Reunion Island (not French Union) French Somaliland (not French Union, though they were at one point) St Pierre & Miquelon Another smaller set also shared a common obverse: French Oceania French Polynesia (not French Union) New Caledonia (French Union until it dissolved) As far as I know, New Caledonia is the only country still using this size, composition and design to this day. If anyone could recommend a book or website talking about the French Union, I would appreciate it. Thanks. -Justin Edited by coincollector1628 10/27/2012 07:37 am Report this Post to the Staff

CGCoins Pillar of the Community United States 797 Posts	Posted 10/27/2012 08:40 am Great coins to collect, I love their design and high relief. I just recently Started picking them up myself, mainly for a world coin collection of a coin per country. It was the French Union from 46-58 then was the French Community from 58-95. Not sure of any books, but some research sites online discuss the history overview. Not much on Coins around. Report this Post to the Staff
wheatiefan Pillar of the Community United States 508 Posts	Posted 10/27/2012 1:42 pm Here is a link for the Numista advanced search results. It is for 'francs' made of aluminum and 23mm. I think that captures all of the 1 francs, and some others that don't really fit your criteria. It looks like you have all of them listed in your post. I like these coins as well. They tend to show up in junk boxes for cheap but still in excellent condition. Some of the countries have larger aluminum 2f or 5f coins. I don't know of any websites or additional reading but would be interested as well. -wheatiefan Report this Post to the Staff
Mr T Pillar of the Community Australia 2180 Posts	Posted 10/27/2012 6:42 pm I saw a pair of books on French colonial coins on ebay recently, but I can't find them now. Report this Post to the Staff
SeriousCERES Valued Member United States 365 Posts	Posted 10/27/2012 11:36 pm Looking for info on the former French colonies? I'd look up French Empire or French Colonies in any encyclopedia for starters (or even the wikipedia). I've never seen a volume specifically on the coinage of the empire, but I have come across (and read some) excellent historical sources on the French colonial experience. Happy Hunting! -SCS Report this Post to the Staff
tzarmarko Pillar of the Community 614 Posts	Posted 10/27/2012 11:39 pm I believe the island of Guadeloupe produced the coins you are looking for at the begging of the 20th century. Report this Post to the Staff
coincollector1628 New Member United States 45 Posts	Posted 10/28/2012 04:37 am I'll keep my eye out for those French Colonial books. I know of at least three coins in the set I don't have yet. I still need a 1948 Togo, a 1948 French Union issue French Somoliland, and a 69-75 French Afars & Issas. The latter two are early colonies of what is now Djibouti. From what I have seen, the Togo is extremely tough to find, especially in MS which I'm trying to put the set together in. I have seen them go on ebay for as much as $150. I'm guessing it is the "key" to the set. The French Afars is a tough one to locate as well. Oh well, if it were easy it wouldn't be as much fun. I'll post the ones I have as soon as I can get good photos. Report this Post to the Staff
Mr T Pillar of the Community Australia 2180 Posts	Posted 10/28/2012 7:37 pm Found it again: http://www.ebay.com/itm/MONNAIES-FR..._3715wt_1206 Report this Post to the Staff
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