The series is the art deco gold coins produced 1929, 1932, 1933, 1935 and 1936. See picture. Mintages in the first 3 years were very low but in the millions in the last two years. But what about 1934? Krause lists the 1934 coin as “rare” with no mintage stated. Friedberg lists the 1934 as “unknown”. Numista.com lists a mintage of ten 1934 coins but with a note in French of “a confirmer”, which means to confirm (i.e. needs confirming). No coin for 1934 is mentioned in Gadoury or Le Franc 2019. Neither NGC nor PCGS list a 1934 coin in the pop reports. However, both NGC and PCGS registries have slots for it. Neither the ANS collection nor Département des Monnaies, Médailles et Antiques de la Bibliothèque Nationale de France lists one in their inventory. I’m starting to think the coin doesn’t exist. If anyone can point me to a picture, museum listing or sale record, I’d be grateful. Cal
I'm no expert on French coinage by any means, but could this situation be similar to the "1804" silver dollar where the mint reused dies from previous years. Regardless, that coin underscores the beauty of the art deco aesthetic.
Can't help ya with the '34 but I used to own this one - '78 essai. If memory serves there were only 150 or so minted. Cost to me circa 2003 - melt.
Nice coin, Doug! Lucien Bazor, designer of the 1929-1936 100-franc gold coins, was obviously influenced by Adoph Weinman's "Mercury" dime design. Weinman was probably influenced by the French “rooster” 10- and 20-franc gold coins, which first appeared in the late 1890’s. These coins were designed by Jules-Clement Chaplain. See the pics for my example. Weinman’s inspiration was to replace the oak leaves with wings on Miss Liberty’s cap. In France, Miss Liberty is called Marianne. Cal
They really easy to get. Heritage Auctions has some on their weekly "World/Ancients" events. The Marianne AV 20/ 1o Francs are avaliable in MS-65/55 regularly. The Bazor ones are often in auctions too.
The easiest and cheapest to find in certified MS grades are the 20-franc rooster coins minted after 1905. Almost any dealer in world coins will have them. Earlier 20-franc and all 10-franc certified coins are harder to find and more expensive. The 100-franc winged Marianne coins minted 1935 or 1936 are also plentiful in certified MS grades but several times more expensive than the 20-franc roosters. The earlier winged Marianne coins are really rare and really expensive. Uncertified 20-franc coins are readily available from European dealers and are cheapest of all ... not much above melt. Cal