France was the primary architect of the Latin Monetary Union (LMU) in 1865. This standard required nations such as Belgium, Switzerland, and Italy to strike silver coins with identical weights and purities. As a result, these coins circulated freely and facilitated seamless trade across Europe for decades.
French silver is famously diverse, spanning from the high-purity 90% standards of the Napoleonic era to the iconic "Sower" (La Semeuse) design. Even as other nations abandoned silver post-WWII, France continued to issue large-format silver coins like the 10 and 50 Franc Hercules types well into the 1970s.
| Coin Type | Purity | Years | ASW (oz) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 Francs (Hercules) | 90.0% | 1974-1980 | 0.8681 |
| 10 Francs (Hercules) | 90.0% | 1964-1973 | 0.7234 |
| 5 Francs (Hercules) | 90.0% | 1870-1889 | 0.7234 |
| 5 Francs (Sower) | 83.5% | 1960-1969 | 0.3222 |
| 20 Francs | 68.0% | 1929-1939 | 0.4373 |
| 10 Francs | 68.0% | 1929-1939 | 0.2186 |
| 2 Francs (Sower) | 83.5% | 1898-1920 | 0.2685 |
| 1 Franc (Sower) | 83.5% | 1898-1920 | 0.1342 |
| 50 Centimes (Sower) | 83.5% | 1897-1920 | 0.0671 |
| 100 Francs (Commem) | 90.0% | 1982-2001 | 0.4340 |
| 100 Francs (Fraternity) | 95.0% | 1988 | 0.4581 |
