20 French francs | Angel

 

The 20 French Francs - Angel appeared for the first time in 1791 as a result of the French Revolution in 1789. On the front of this coin there's an angelic figure writing down the constitution of the new post-revolutionary France.

 

Soon, rumour had it that the 20 French francs - Angel was a 'lucky coin' because - according to tradition - the coin designer, Augustine Dupré escaped from death by the guillotine during The Terror thanks to the Angel coin he carried in his pocket. It's said to have prevented the guillotine knife from falling down during his execution. However unlikely and unbelievable; the story quickly began to lead its own life and all of the sudden it was a widely accepted fact that the 20 French francs - Angel brought prosperity to whom owned it. Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo, for example, was accorded to the loss of his gold Angel coin that had succeeded him in earlier missions.

 

After the fall of Napoleon III Bonaparte, and the second French Empire in 1870, the Angel coin was re-introduced. The new Third French Republic liked the revolutionary design of the 20 French francs - Angel and brought it back into circulation until 1898.

 

The legend of the 'lucky mint', however, continued to live a longer life. For example, many French soldiers carried an Angel coin as a talisman during WW I. During WW II, Herman Goering, the head of the German Luftwaffe, was so obsessed with the legend of the French Angel coins that he confiscated as much of Angel coins as he possibly could and handed them out to his German combat pilots to assure succes during battle.

The 20 FF - Angel, along with the other 20 French francs, 20 BEF, 20 CHF & 20 ITL, make up the proverbial 'euro-before-the-euro-club'.

 

The gold 20 French francs - Angel has a purity of 900/1.000 (21,6 carats) and a net gold content of 5,81 grams of gold. The remaining 0,64 grams consist of copper which gives the coin its typical light-orange shine. This alloy, incidentally, ensures that the coin is damaged less quickly which was necessary to withstand the wear by regular circulation.

 

The face of the 20 French francs - Angel shows the image of an angelic figure describing the new French Constitution. Left and right of this figure you respectively see a 'fascis' (Latin for bundle) and a rooster. The fascis is an ancient Roman symbol that indicated the authority of senior magistrates. In modern iconography, however, this symbol stands for justice and unity. The rooster, le Coq Gaulois, symbolizes France. At the bottom of the coin you'll see the name 'Duprez'; the designer of the french Angel coin. At the top are the words 'République française'.

 

On the back of the coin you see the famous words 'Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité': the motto of France that was introduced during the French Revolution. In the middle of the coin you see a crown containing the nominal value of the coin and the year of issue. The letter at the bottom of the coin indicates the place where the coin was struck.

 

The 20 French francs - Angel and other gold coins are perfectly suitable as a purchase of physical gold. Gold coins are not taxed because they are considered monetary gold. And while all the gold coins offered by Argentor have been tested for authenticity, they are not delivered with a certificate of authenticity. That, unlike gold bars.

 

You are more than welcome in our office to sell your gold 20 French francs - Angel coin(s). You needn't make an appointment to do so.

 

Our buying prices are adapted every minute to the gold actual rate and will be hedged once you present your coin(s) in our office. You can always check our live buying prices on this page.