Set Description
The Napoleonic era (1802-1815) was a period of great change, not just across Europe, but also the America’s and as a result laid the foundation of many countries and their borders we know today (sale of the Louisana Territory to the United States in 1803, the French expansion in Europe also precipitated the collapse of Spanish and Portuguese rule in central and south America).
The Revolutionary period also saw the adoption of the decimal system of coinage in France with the new 20 franc piece at 0.1867 oz of 0.900 fine gold becoming the standard for trade with many countries striking equivalent coins at various times (the Latin Monetary Union; Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Poland, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Spain, Switzerland and the Vatican).
There are two types of dates seen on the coins of Napoleon, the first is the Republican or Revolutionary calender (such as AN12) which ran from 1792 until 1805 with some variation in when the calender actually started and also what date constituted the start of the year. Napoleon abolished this in late 1805 (AN14) and implemented the Gregorian calender from 1st January 1806, consequently the 'bare head' issues of the coinage can therefore be found with both types of dates. 1807 saw a desire for a new portrait now that Napoleon had made himself Emperor, the first attempt at this (referred to as the African Head) Napoleon didn't approve of as he thought it made him look like a slave so this was rapidly changed to the classic Laureate Head which continued until the restoration of the monarchy with Louis XVIII following defeat at Waterloo.
The coinage was struck at a range of mints, with Paris (mintmark 'A') typically being the most common issue, and it is no surprise that coins from this mint make up the majority of those seen. The many Laureate Head issues are by far the most common with the African Head and the Hundred Days issues (1807A and 1815 respectively) probably the most difficult to find due to the limited numbers produced although the coins from the Consulate period are not far behind.
Mints
A: Paris
B: Rouen
BB: Strasbourg
CL: Genoa
D: Lyon
G: Geneve
H: La Rochelle
I: Limoges
K: Bordeux
L: Bayonne
M: Toulouse
MA: Marseille
Q: Perpignan
T: Nantes
U: Turin
W: Lille
Flag: Utrech
CrownR: Rome
My goal, since 2012, has been to complete a graded typeset of Napoleonic coinage, and this set represents the current status of the collection, there is always room to upgrade and/or add rarer date-mintmark combinations, and the variation in size/design/metal that a typeset introduces into a collection keeps things interesting. Complete date runs would be almost impossible, even with an unlimited budget, as most denominations include many rare and several extremely rare or even unique pieces (nearly 200 different 5 francs!). Finding examples in F/VF grades for some of the more common issues in the set is not too difficult however a set in AU/MS represents a significant challenge as the coins circulated widely and as such not many have survived in these higher grades. This situation is also reflected in the very low numbers of graded coins with no graded examples at all for many issues. Of the known examples the finest coin for any particular issue may be found in any grade, encompassing the full range from G to MS (e.g. for the AN14U ¼F the finest is graded F10 at PCGS with none at NGC – Nov2017). Due to the enduring worldwide interest in the Napoleonic era the coins for this set, as a mix of graded and raw coins, have been sourced from numerous auctions from across the globe. The distinct prospect of finding that first, or elusive high grade example for a particular issue remains and makes every auction catalogue a potential source of a new discovery.
References:
Gad: Monnaies Francaises, 1789-2017, Editions Victor Gadoury
F: Le Franc Poche 2017, Guide des Prix des Monnaies Francaises 1795-2001 (incl. mintages)
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View Coin
| Emperor, 5 Centimes (1808) |
MS 62 BN
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1935
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| 12/6/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 10 Centimes (1807-1810) |
MS 65
|
640
|
| 12/6/2018 |
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View Coin
| Premier Consul, 1/4 Franc (AN12-1804) |
MS 62
|
1098
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| 5/10/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 1/4 Franc, Bare Head (1803-1807) |
MS 62
|
1455
|
| 12/6/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 1/4 Franc, Negro Head (1807) |
AU 58
|
1860
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| 12/6/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 1/4 Franc, Laureate Head (1807-1809) |
MS 63
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3064
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| 5/10/2018 |
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| Premier Consul, 1/2 Franc (1802-1803) |
|
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| |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 1/2 Franc, Bare Head (1803-1807) |
MS 64
|
1623
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| 5/10/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 1/2 Franc, Negro Head (1807) |
AU 53
|
2428
|
| 5/10/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 1/2 Franc, Laureate Head (1807-1814) |
MS 64
|
959
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| 5/10/2018 |
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View Coin
| Premier Consul, Franc (1802-1803) |
MS 61
|
1271
|
| 5/10/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, Franc, Bare Head (1803-1807) |
MS 62
|
1416
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| 5/10/2018 |
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| Emperor, Franc, Negro Head (1807) |
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| |
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View Coin
| Emperor, Franc, Laureate Head (1807-1814) |
MS 62
|
1309
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| 5/10/2018 |
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View Coin
| Premier Consul, 2 Francs (1803) |
AU 58
|
1948
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| 5/10/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 2 Francs, Bare Head (1803-1807) |
MS 64
|
2176
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| 12/6/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 2 Francs, Negro Head (1807) |
AU 55
|
4882
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| 12/6/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 2 Francs, Laureate Head (1807-1814) |
MS 63
|
1617
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| 5/10/2018 |
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View Coin
| Hundred Days, 2 Francs (1815) |
MS 62
|
3543
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| 12/6/2018 |
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| Premier Consul, 5 Francs (1802-1803) |
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| |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 5 Francs, Bare Head (1803-1807) |
AU 53
|
1606
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| 12/6/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 5 Francs, Laureate Head (1807-1814) |
MS 61
|
739
|
| 5/10/2018 |
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View Coin
| Hundred Days, 5 Francs (1815) |
VF 30
|
1173
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| 12/6/2018 |
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View Coin
| Premier Consul, 20 Francs (1802-1803) |
AU 58
|
2009
|
| 4/15/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 20 Francs, Bare Head (1803-1807) |
XF 45
|
3345
|
| 12/6/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 20 Francs, Laureate Head (1807-1814) |
AU 53
|
2163
|
| 4/15/2018 |
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View Coin
| Hundred Days, 20 Francs (1815) |
AU 53
|
1892
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| 11/26/2018 |
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View Coin
| Premier Consul, 40 Francs (1802-1803) |
AU 58
|
2581
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| 4/7/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 40 Francs, Bare Head (1803-1807) |
AU 55
|
3583
|
| 4/7/2018 |
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View Coin
| Emperor, 40 Francs, Laureate Head (1807-1813) |
AU 53
|
2720
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| 12/6/2018 |
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