2017-01-24 Tue

Two gold Sower coins will be issued by France on 31st January, one of which is a €25 version .999 fine gold coin.

The Sower design has been an integral part of the French numismatic history for more than 100 years. It was first designed in 1887 by Oscar Roty for a Department of Agriculture medal. The French Minister for Finance Paul Doumer ordered new coins in 1896 and Roty came up with a new version of the Sower.

It was used on circulating coins first but was reintroduced in 2002 on a series of collector coins with subsets. The current coins celebrate the classic French coins with annual issues which began in 2014, a year that marked the French Mint’s 1,150th anniversary. The 2017 coin honours the gold louis d’or which was created in 1640 under Louis XIII to stabilise the economy and compete with Spanish and English coins.

The obverse of the original coin features the king turned to the right and the Latin inscription LVD XIII DG - FR ET NAV REX, meaning “Louis XIII, King of France and of Navarre thanks to the grace of God.” The reverse features a cross created by four double Ls, a crown and a fleur-de-lys.”

The reverse of the 2017 coin features the three French kings named Louis, symbols of the old regimes and a revised louis d’or design. The obverse features the new design, the 12 stars of the European flag, a woman carrying a French flag and the year date.

One silver and two gold coins will be released.