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 Replies: 23 / Views: 3,022 |
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Bedrock of the Community
 United States
25066 Posts |
My first Napoleon. 37mm, 25 g. Lettered edge reads DIEU PROTEGE LA FRANCE (GOD PROTECTS FRANCE)   Inordinately fascinated by bits of metal with strange markings and figures
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Valued Member
United States
70 Posts |
Very nice, a great addition for any collection and lots of history. Numista's page on this coin has info about the marks you see. The "A" stands for Paris mint, so it was minted in Paris. The rooster is the Paris Mint Master's mark, and the cursive "C" beneath the bust of Napoleon stands for Pierre-Joseph Tiolier, the engraver. https://en.numista.com/catalogue/pieces2108.html |
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Pillar of the Community
 Sweden
2124 Posts |
Beware, those Napoleons are addictive!  I thought I was collecting Swedish coins until I happened to acquire a Napoleon. Now I have 250 French coins ...  |
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Bedrock of the Community
 United States
25066 Posts |
erafjel, tell me about it! One of the first coins that fascinated me was a 1923 "Bon Pour 50 Centimes" token I found in my parents' penny jar back in the '60s. Now have a virtually complete set of the Bon Pour tokens. And after the 5 Francs, I came across this 1810 20 Francs. Gold coins are difficult to photograph!   Inordinately fascinated by bits of metal with strange markings and figures
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
25066 Posts |
By the way, thank you OwlBuffs for the Numista reference!
Inordinately fascinated by bits of metal with strange markings and figures
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Pillar of the Community
Sweden
2124 Posts |
Here is my first Napoleon, also my first French coin: 40 francs, 1812, Paris (A).  |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
25066 Posts |
That is a fantasic coin, erafjel - a real beauty!
My ancestors were booted from France in the late 1600's, then forced out of Acadia to Louisiana in the 1700s. But still I have a fascination for the land of my ancestors.
Inordinately fascinated by bits of metal with strange markings and figures
Edited by HondoB
03/11/2023 6:05 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1912 Posts |
Coins like these also exist as fakes- but it's not hard to learn if you have a good one.
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Valued Member
United States
70 Posts |
Quote:
By the way, thank you OwlBuffs for the Numista reference! Of course! French coins, especially from the Napoleonic Era, are really fun to collect! Here is my 5 Franc from the same time period:  |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
25066 Posts |
Wow, how very fine, OwlBuffs!
Inordinately fascinated by bits of metal with strange markings and figures
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Valued Member
United States
70 Posts |
Thank you! Happy collecting!
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Pillar of the Community
Sweden
2124 Posts |
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That is a fantasic coin, erafjel - a real beauty! Thank you! It is still one of my favorites - I don't think you can blame me for falling in love with French coins after this one.  Quote:
Wow, how very fine, OwlBuffs!  Quote:
French coins, especially from the Napoleonic Era, are really fun to collect! I agree with this too. From Napoleon, I expanded my French collection forwards and backwards in time, now I have coins all the way from 480 BC Greek Massalia (Marseille) to 2001 (I stop when the euro came). A couple of more Napoleons found their way into my collection. Here is the only 5 francs Napoleon I have, minted during the "100 days" when Napoleon returned to France after having escaped from his first exile on the island of Elba and took up war against the Coalition again. Unsuccessfully, as we know, and after that he was sent to St Helena in the middle of the Atlantic instead. 5 francs, 1815, Paris (A). Then I have this earlier one, from the time when France was still called a republic - but with an emperor ...  20 francs, 1807, Paris (A). And finally, one from before that, when Napoleon was still 1st consul and the revolutionary calendar was still in use: 40 francs, year 12 (1803-04), Paris (A). |
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Valued Member
United States
70 Posts |
Erafjel, I see you are from Sweden. Do you have any coins from Charles XIV, Jean Bernadotte? For people less familiar with Swedish history, Bernadotte was a French general and was one of Napoleon's marshals during the Napoleonic Wars before being adopted as heir to the Swedish throne (he later allied Sweden against Napoleonic France!).
His descendants are still on the Swedish throne today.
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Pillar of the Community
Sweden
2124 Posts |
OwlBuffs, no, I have no Charles XIV coins. I would have had, if I hadn't shifted focus to French coins ...But if I come across a nice riksdaler of his, I might fix that.  And yes, we still have those Frenchies on our throne today!  Charles XVI is 76 years old and will probably live long yet. One day he will be succeeded by Victoria I. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3343 Posts |
Just finished rereading an old France Magazine article on a visit to St. Helena. Expensive and not easy to do but very interesting.
I wish I had a 100 Days coin as nice as that 5 franc erafjel. I have a very worn 2 franc, which I found in Paul Bosco's NYC shop 10 years ago. Randomly mixed up with other coins, it was a memorable find.
"Two minutes ago I would have sold my chances for a tired dime." Fred Astaire
Edited by thq
03/15/2023 5:31 pm
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
36710 Posts |
Some great looking Napoleon coins!
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Replies: 23 / Views: 3,022 |
Posted 03/11/2023 2:17 pm
