Belgian Congo 50 Francs 1944, my White Whale is a White Elephant

WillieBoyd2

I had wanted to have one of these big coins since I was a kid in 1964 when I saw one in R. S. Yeoman's book A Catalog of Modern World Coins.

I finally got one after 60 years.

Belgian Congo 50 Francs 1944
Silver, 35 mm, 17.37 gm, 500 fine
Obverse: Elephant facing left / 1944
Reverse: BANQUE DU CONGO BELGE (French) / BANK VAN BELGISCH CONGO (Flemish) / 50 FR
Mint: South African Mint in Pretoria

It was later joined by a similar but smaller coin:

Belgian Congo 2 Francs 1943
Brass, 28x25 mm, 5.93 gm, hexagonal
Mint: Philadelphia Mint

The United States was happy to mint these coins for the Belgian authorities.

The Belgian Congo had a large uranium mine which had been closed in 1937 as no one wanted uranium.

The mine was re-opened in 1944 and the newly mined uranium was sent to America.

bidask

I have never seen a 1944 Belgium 50 francs graded MS 65 ….not sure if one even exists ?!

I own a MS 64 with good luster … great coin!

FilamCoins

I do like that simple, classic design. Must be spectacular in gem BU or proof (if they exist).

carabonnair

I like those a lot. The hexagonal one is also famous for the misspelling "BELGISH" instead of "BELGISCH".

amwldcoin

The coin cutters sure put a dent in the population of these.