20 francs FRANCE (1950-1954)

in the coin centre personification of France - Marianne's head in a laurel wreath facing left; along the left edge: REPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE (French Republic); ring of rectangles at the edge

above coin centre in two lines face value 20 / FRANCS; below year of issue; on the left a rooster - one of symbols of France; below a laurel branch; along the bottom edge motto of France: LIBERTE EGALITE FRATERNITE (liberty, equality, fraternity); ring of rectangles at the edge

plain

7 VII 1950

21 VIII 1969

Georges Guiraud (signature G.GUIRAUD in two lines along the right edge of the obverse)

La Monnaie de Paris (The Paris Mint) (mint mark before year of issue in the reverse, after year of issue privy mark of mint's director Lucien Bazor - wing)

plant Paris (no letter below year of issue in the reverse),

plant Beaumont-le-Roger (letter B below year of issue in the reverse)

	Paris	Beaumont-le-Roger
1950	< 126 435 000	< 43 355 000	together with the earlier type
1951	97 922 000	46 814 790
1952	130 281 000	54 381 160
1953	60 158 000	42 409 050
1954	-	???

1950, 1951, 1952, 1953 - no letter (plant Paris) or letter B (plant Beaumont-le-Roger)

1950, 1950B - three or four feathers in rooster's tail in the reverse

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

Rooster is a symbol of France (Gaul) since the Roman times. This symbol appeared probably during the Roman period based on a wordplay of Latin gallus, which meant both rooster and Celt from Gaul region.


Marianne - the allegory of Liberty - the symbol of the culture and the national emblem of France. Her images adorn not only coins, but also stamps, state seals, institutions logos, courts of law. Marianne is presented mostly in the Phrygian cap (cap of liberty). Many monuments and paintings were devoted to her. She is often armed leading the French people to fight for liberty, equality and fraternity. Marianne's image changed over the years. Anonymous Marianne was represented by faces of movie stars such as Brigitte Bardot or Catherine Deneuve. Below the official logo of France and the French government.



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.