France 20 and 50 Centimes and 1, 2 and 5 Francs 1849 to 1895

The Republic of France issued 50 centimes and 1, 2, and 5 francs coins in silver during the period from 1870 to 1895. These coins bear the image of Ceres, Roman goddess of growing plants, and she was a popular theme for coins and stamps. According to Wikipedia, Ceres appeared on the first French postage stamp. Other coins of the period have themes different than Ceres, e.g., Napoleon, but this page applies only to Ceres coins.

20 CENTIMES: 0.029 troy ounces silver (all dates)
50 CENTIMES 1849 TO 1850: 0.072 ounces silver
50 CENTIMES 1871 TO 1895: 0.067 ounces silver
1 FRANC 1849 TO 1850: 0.145 ounces
1 FRANC 1871 TO 1873: 0.134 ounces
2 FRANCS 1849 TO 1851: 0.289 ounces
2 FRANCS 1870 TO 1895: 0.268 ounces
5 FRANCS: 0.723 ounces (all dates)

The coin in the picture is a nice one. It comes from respected eBay seller Lockdales-of-Ipswich and CoinQuest thanks them for letting us use their image. Most of these old francs you see are in worse shape than Lockdales, showing heavy wear and unappealing appearance.

Value-wise, these coins are somewhat scarce and command decent value when in good condition. Here is a run-down of approximate catalog values for these nice old silver coins:

20 CENTIMES WITH CERES BEFORE 1871:
worn: $3 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $10
well preserved: $25
fully uncirculated: $60
20 centimes dated 1849 catalog at $400 in well preserved condition
20 centimes dated 1850 with BB or K mint marks (not A mint mark) catalog at $120 in well preserved condition

20 CENTIMES WITH CERES DATED 1889:
this is a very rare coin, worth at least $5000

50 CENTIMES WITH CERES BEFORE 1871:
worn: $8 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $20
well preserved: $40
fully uncirculated: $170
50 centimes dated 1849 catalog at $600 in well preserved condition
50 centimes dated 1850 with BB or K mint marks (not A mint mark) catalog at $250 in well preserved condition

50 CENTIMES WITH CERES AFTER 1870:
worn: $8 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $20
well preserved: $40
fully uncirculated: $170
50 centimes dated 1888, 1894, and 1895 are more common and worth about one-quarter these values

1 FRANC WITH CERES BEFORE 1871:
worn: $20 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $50
well preserved: $100
fully uncirculated: $280
1 franc dated 1849BB and 1849K (not 1849 with A mint mark) catalog at $600 in well preserved condition

1 FRANC WITH CERES AFTER 1870:
worn: $6 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $10
well preserved: $30
fully uncirculated: $120

2 FRANCS WITH CERES BEFORE 1870:
worn: $100 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $300
well preserved: $680
fully uncirculated: $1400
2 francs dated 1849BB and 1849K (not 1849 with A mint mark) catalog at $1000 in well preserved condition

2 FRANCS WITH CERES BUT WITHOUT LIBERTE, EGALITE, FRATERNITE AROUND WREATH:
worn: $50 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $100
well preserved: $320
fully uncirculated: $860

2 FRANCS WITH CERES AFTER 1869 WITH LIBERTE, EGALITE, FRATERNITE:
worn: $10 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $20
well preserved: $80
fully uncirculated: $240
2 francs dated 1873 are worth about twice these values
2 francs dated 1888 are worth about three times these values

5 FRANCS WITH CERES BEFORE 1870:
worn: $20 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $60
well preserved: $160
fully uncirculated: $480
5 francs dated 1852BB catalogs at a whopping $2750 in well preserved condition

5 FRANCS WITH CERES BUT WITHOUT LIBERTE, EGALITE, FRATERNITE AROUND WREATH:
worn: $80 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $200
well preserved: $620
fully uncirculated: $1300

5 FRANCS WITH CERES AFTER 1869 WITH LIBERTE, EGALITE, FRATERNITE:
worn: $20 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $30
well preserved: $50
fully uncirculated: $120
5 francs dated 1870A, 1871A, and 1872A are worth about four times these values
5 francs dated 1878A (not 1878K) catalog at $2000 in well preserved condition
5 francs dated 1871K and 1872K catalog at $700 in well preserved condition

Remember that the values above are approximate catalog values and must be properly interpreted to convert them to actual buy and sell values. Use our Terminology page for more information.
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