20 Francs France Louis XVIII Gold Coin | 1814 - 1824

20 Francs, Louis XVIII

6.45161 g gross, 900 fine, 5.806 g of pure gold, 21 mm across. The same standard as the Napoleon that preceded it and the Napoleon III that followed — the franc germinal of 1803, unchanged through three regimes.

Specifications

Two types, not one

The dressed bust type of 1814 and 1815 shows Louis XVIII draped, wearing the cordon of the Order of the Holy Spirit, engraved by Pierre-Joseph Tiolier; the reverse is the crowned arms of France in a wreath. About 5.6 million were struck.

The bare head type of 1816 to 1824 has an obverse by Auguste-Francois Michaut and a different reverse by Andre Galle, showing the crowned shield between olive branches. About 12.7 million were struck, so this is the type usually offered.

The edge is worth reading

Both types carry DOMINE SALVUM FAC REGEM on the edge. Cast counterfeits frequently get this wrong, which makes the edge one of the quickest checks on a coin of this age.

Paris dominates, the provinces do not

Paris, mintmark A, struck the overwhelming majority. Provincial mintmarks are much scarcer and some are genuinely rare: the 1816 L of Bayonne runs to under nine hundred pieces. Check the mintmark before treating any example as ordinary bullion.

The Latin Monetary Union standard

The 20 franc standard was fixed by the French franc germinal of 1803 and internationalised by the Latin Monetary Union convention of 1865: 6.45161 g gross, 900 fine, 5.806 g of pure gold, 21 mm. France, Belgium, Italy, Switzerland and Greece struck to it as members; Spain, Romania, Austria-Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria, Finland and Tunisia struck to it without joining.

That is why a French Napoleon, an Italian marengo, a Swiss Vreneli of 20 francs and a Tunisian 20 francs all hold the same gold. For bullion purposes they are interchangeable.

VAT and UK capital gains tax

HMRC treats a coin minted after 1800 as bullion gold if it is at least 900 thousandths fine, is or has been legal tender in its country of origin, and normally sells at no more than 180 per cent of the open market value of its gold (VAT Notice 701/21A). The 20 Francs is 900 fine, was French legal tender and is sold close to the gold price, so it meets all three tests.

Capital gains tax is a separate matter. The UK exemption follows sterling legal tender, so it covers Sovereigns and Britannias but not a French coin. This is a statement of the published rule, not tax advice — your own position depends on your circumstances.

Questions buyers ask

How much gold does it contain? 5.806 g of pure gold at 900 fineness.

Which type will I receive? Mixed dates from the 1814 to 1824 range. The bare head type is the more common of the two.

Is it the same gold as a Napoleon? Yes. The standard did not change between the regimes.

Does the mintmark matter? For most dates, no. For a handful of provincial dates it matters a great deal, so we check each coin.

Authenticity checked at GoldInvest24 before dispatch. Other sizes are on the historic gold coins page. Live quotes on the precious metals prices page.