2 francs FRANCE (1995) Louis Pasteur

in the coin centre bust of Louis Pasteur en face; in the background facade of the Pasteur Institute in Paris; along the top edge: RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE (French Republic), along the bottom edge: 1822 LOUIS PASTEUR 1895; frame in a shape of octagon

in the coin centre in two lines face value: 2 / FRANCS composed into laboratory equipment; below year of issue 1995; along the top edge motto of France: LIBERTÉ ÉGALITÉ FRATERNITÉ (liberty, equality, fraternity); frame in a shape of octagon

reeded

???  no data

18 II 2002

Pierre Rodier (signature P.RODIER below stairs to institute in the obverse)

La Monnaie de Paris (The Paris Mint), Pessac (mint mark before year of issue in the reverse, after year of issue privy mark of coin designer and mint director Pierre Rodier - bee)

1995

9 975 011

Privy marks of the general engravers of the Mint of Paris, which can be found on French coins produced after 1944:

Lucien Bazor	1931-1958		wing
Raymond Joly	1958-1974		owl
Emile Rousseau	1974-1994		dolphin
Pierre Rodier	1994-2000		bee
Gérard Buquoy	2001-2002		horseshoe
Serge Levet	2003		heart
Hubert Larivière	2004-2010		horn
Yves Sampo	from 2011		rosette

The commemorative coin of 2 francs from 1995 commemorates the 100th anniversary of death of Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) - French microbiologist, the inventor of a vaccine against rabies.



The Paris Mint (La Monnaie de Paris) dating back to the 6th century is the oldest French institution, and some would say - oldest institution in the world. The mint office is located in the center of Paris in a complex called Hotel des Monnaies, which was opened on December 20, 1775. A cornucopia is the symbol placed on any coin minted by the Paris Mint from January 1, 1880. The second character visible on coins was a symbol of the general engraver (Graveur general). The tradition of this job dates back to 1547 when Henry II of Valois appointed a general engraver as the only person authorized to create the king's portrait. Only the design prepared by the general engraver could have been copied to the coins stamps in national mints. Starting from 2001, the heads of engravers workshop in the Paris Mint do not hold this traditional title anymore, but their privy marks still appear on French coins next to the mint mark.

The name of the French mint - La Monnaie de Paris - suggests that the plant producing coins is located in the French capital. This is however, only the company name and factories were placed in various French cities. At the moment, the only place producing coins of France (and of some other countries) is Pessac near Bordeaux.