2 Francs Semeuse

The 2 Francs Semeuse is a silver circulation coin of the French Third Republic, worth two francs. The obverse shows the famous Semeuse, a female sower striding left and scattering seed against the rising sun, with the word LIBERTE across the field. The reverse carries the denomination 2 FRANCS, the date, and the republican motto LIBERTE EGALITE FRATERNITE.

Struck in silver and mid-sized in the hand, it was one of the workhorse silver denominations of pre-war and wartime France. The photographed example is dated 1915, placing it squarely in the First World War period when these coins still circulated widely before silver was gradually withdrawn.

The Semeuse design is the work of engraver Louis-Oscar Roty, whose sower first appeared on French silver in the late 1890s. The figure—a woman sowing seed into the wind at dawn—became one of the most enduring images in French numismatics and was used across several denominations of the Third Republic.

The silver 2 francs Semeuse was issued from around the turn of the century through the end of the 1910s. The 1915 date seen here falls during the First World War, a time when silver coinage was under pressure: as the war continued, silver was increasingly hoarded and eventually withdrawn from everyday use, and the large silver denominations ceased production not long after. Later French coins would revive the Semeuse motif on base-metal pieces, but the two francs of this era is a genuine silver issue of the wartime and pre-war Republic.

Look first at the obverse. The Semeuse is unmistakable: a robed woman in profile walking left, her arm swinging to cast seed, with a radiant sunrise behind her and the single word LIBERTE arching above. Roty's signature typically appears along the ground line below the figure.

The reverse confirms the coin: the value 2 FRANCS within a wreath or open field, the date (1915 on this piece), and the motto LIBERTE EGALITE FRATERNITE. The metal is silver, giving the coin a bright white tone and a solid feel; genuine pieces are notably heavier than the later base-metal Semeuse coins. A reeded edge is normal for the silver issue. The mid-sized silver 2 francs sits between the smaller 50 centimes and 1 franc Semeuse and the larger silver crowns, so read the stated denomination rather than judging by size alone.

The silver 2 Francs Semeuse is a collectible but not inherently rare coin; most dates were produced in quantity. Value is driven chiefly by silver content, condition, and the specific year and mint, since some dates and mint marks are markedly scarcer than others.

Well-worn common-date examples trade close to their silver bullion value, while sharply struck, lightly circulated, or uncirculated coins command collector premiums above melt. Scarce dates and high grades can be worth substantially more. Because prices swing with both the silver market and the individual date/grade, check recent sales for the exact year (such as 1915) and condition rather than assuming a single figure.

Beware that the later 20th-century nickel 2 francs Semeuse is a different, base-metal coin worth only a token amount; the pre-1920 silver piece is the one with intrinsic metal value.