Inexpensive impulse buy (outside my usual zone and semi-OT here, since it's paper)

lordmarcovan

I thought these assignats were interesting relics of the French Revolution.

This particular pair was printed just around the time Louis XVI lost his head. I liked the printed vignettes and embossing and such, and they were quite inexpensive. (Before shipping, the pair cost me twenty bucks.)

I've never really messed with paper money much, but I have found American colonial notes and fractional currency interesting, as well as some German notgeld.

Neat, huh?


15 sols, October 24, 1792, signed by Buttin. 80 x 66 mm.




50 sols, May, 1793, signed by Laussay. 85 x 75 mm.

STLNATS

Interesting, historic and cheap. Nice examples of an interesting series.

TwoKopeiki

These were hand-signed? Neat.

NiceCurrency

French Assignats are cheap fun

marcmoish

interesting and no holes on these hmm

DorkGirl

Wow, beautiful handwriting.

SmEagle1795

<< <i>Wow, beautiful handwriting. >>



+1, I really admire the handwriting of these old notes. US continental currency is also usually very impressively signed. A lost art...

MacCrimmon

Assignats!!!??? Why cheap? Forerunner of those 1M Marks notes of Weimar.



* Read how they came to be, and cry because no honest, ethical men in DC killed this beast a century ago.


The USA today could use about 1000, Andrew Dickson Whites. I read this book a million years ago in college (no, it wasn't required reading; far from it), and have never forgot it. Sad, very sad, and we are in the midst of living it again.


* this might take more than 30 minutes to read.

lordmarcovan

<< <i>

<< <i>Wow, beautiful handwriting. >>



+1, I really admire the handwriting of these old notes. US continental currency is also usually very impressively signed. A lost art... >>

Yes, no doubt the nation's penmanship declined when we no longer had stern headmasters standing over children's desks, cane or ruler in hand, ready to whack some skill into 'em.

(My mother has some good nun stories from her boarding school days, though.)

Andres

I have a small collection of these french assignats , these can be bought for less money overhere in Europe.

look for (about) uncirculated notes with good margins , the dry stamps look very impressive on unc notes .

wide margins:


drystamp on the 50 sol note

lordmarcovan

Wow, that's impressive.

Then again, I sort of like the circulated look on the ones I bought, too.

NiceCurrency

Plenty still exist in uncut sheet form which is pretty cool for something dating to the French Revolution

Andres

I have a nice postcard with King Louis XVI and his family in front of an assignat with his picture.

Aethelred

I know there are a lot of these out there, but I have always thought they were a good deal at current prices.