Theres just something about a girl and her chicken

boiler78

I just got this five francs pattern in todays mail and I am anxious to learn more about it. Can anyone here enlighten me? Does anyone happen to have the Mazard (sp?) book that covers French patterns?

I have found the coin in Krause but unfortunately there is little information about it.

cosmicdebris

Awesome coin! I wish I could help with more info.

lordmarcovan

Reminds me of a silver Austrian coin I got not too long ago- a lady with a chicken for a hat.

That's a fantastique pattern.

spoon

I'm of no help... just disregard me. I'll be the fool drooling in the corner

(that is a NICE coin!!)

boiler78

spoon- Cool Icon!

spoon

Thanks, wanna swap icon coins

Seriously, though.. if you're interested this is what my icon comes from.

SYRACUSIAN

boiler you've got great taste - you collect pattern half dollars if I recall correctly right?

laurentyvan

This is a pattern 5 franc of the 1848 engraving contest.
The coin is an essai by F. Alard-casqued bust facing left with rooster. Specialized reference numbers VG.3059-Maz.1265d -Rarity level R
There are at least 36 essai 5 franc pieces for the year 1848 I am aware of, perhaps more. It makes for a fascinating collecting year!
Boiler78-nice piece!!!!

MacCrimmon

I'm seeing the French engravers were masters at "roundness". With few exceptions, they seem to capture that extremely smooth transition in surface curvatures......and, you know, Scotsmen love smooth curvy surfaces!!

Nice pattern, boiler! Me likes.

Edited: Who says I can spell?

1jester

Me likes it too!!

boiler78

Dimitri- I collect US half dollar and small cent patterns but I think I've "discovered" a whole new world of coins, pun intended.

Laurent- Thanks for the great information! Do you know the approximate mintage that corresponds to the "R" rarity rating? I would also like to buy the Mazard (sp?) book if anyone knows where I can find one.

MacCrimmon

Mark,

Join up here and ask the book questions; they may know the specific books and/or authors. e-sylum

laurentyvan

Boiler78, I'm not sure if this scale applies to French coins as well but it might help.
Freeman, Michael J. The Bronze Coinage of Great Britain Barrie and Jenkins, 1985
Symbol Number of Pieces
R20 Believed unique
R19 2-5
R18 6-15
R17 16-50
R16 51-100
R15 101-250
R14 251-500
R13 501-1,000
R12 1,001-2,000
R11 2,001-3,500
R10 3,501-7,000
R9 7,001-12,000
R8 12,001-20,000
R7 20,001-30,000
R6 30,001-50,000
R5 50,001-100,000
R4 100,001-200,000
R3 200,001-350,000
R2 350,001-650,000
R 650,000-1 million
N 1-2 million
C 2-3 million
C2 3-5 million
C3 5-6 million
C4 6-7½ million
C5 7½-10 million
C6 10-12½ million
C7 12½-15 million
C8 15-17½ million
C9 17½-20 million
C10 20-25 million
C11 25-30 million
C12 30-35 million
C13 35-40 million
C14 40-45 million
C15 45-50 million
C16 50-60 million
C17 60-75 million
C18 75-100 million
C19 100-150 million
C20 over 150 million

MacCrimmon

Found these;

JE40.MazJ:1965:HMNC1

MAZARD, JEAN

Histoire monetaire et numismatique contemporaine,

1790-1963, Vol. I, 1790-1848.

Pub1965, 294pp, illus.



JE40.MazJ:1069:HMNC2

MAZARD, JEAN

Histoire monetaire et numismatique contemporaine,

1790-1967, Vol. II, 1848-1967.

Pub1969, 310pp, illus.


From here: Numismatics International

rhound1977

An awesome piece of Copper!!

farthing

As I stated in the past, I love women in chicken helmets!

You can see that there was a lot of cross pollenation of design lexicon between engravers on both sides of the Atlantic, both sides using classical themes and designs. In addition to the use of mythical females in helmets is the common use of wreaths tied with ribbons. It would be interesting to trace the use of leaves and grains in wreaths on coins and medals.

laurentyvan

I agree farthing. In this case the wreath is comprised of branches from an oak and olive tree.