Napoleon III 20 Francs

The Napoleon III 20 Francs is a small gold coin of the French Second Empire, and the example shown carries the bare head of Emperor Napoleon III facing right on the obverse, with the denomination "20 FRANCS" inside a wreath and the date on the reverse. This 1857-dated piece belongs to the earlier "bare head" (tete nue) portrait series.

Widely known simply as a "Napoleon," the 20 francs gold coin was a workhorse of 19th-century French and European commerce. It follows the long-running French gold standard established under the first Napoleon, containing a fixed amount of gold that made it a trusted store of value and a popular coin for both circulation and saving.

Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte, nephew of Napoleon I, was elected president of the French Second Republic and then proclaimed himself Emperor Napoleon III in 1852, ruling until the collapse of the Second Empire in 1870. His 20 francs gold coinage was struck across this period and continued the standard gold denomination that had circulated in France since the Consulate.

The portrait evolved during the reign: earlier issues, including the 1857 coin shown, depict the emperor with a bare head, while later issues from the 1860s show him wearing a laurel wreath. The reverse changed as well, with the plain wreathed-value design of the early years giving way to a design bearing the imperial arms on some later dates. The coin conformed to the Latin Monetary Union weight standard shared by several European nations, making the French 20 francs interchangeable with equivalent gold pieces from Italy, Belgium, Switzerland, and elsewhere.

Look for a small gold coin about 21 mm in diameter with a bare-headed portrait of Napoleon III facing right and a surrounding legend naming him as emperor. The example shown reads with the "tete nue" (bare head) bust rather than a laurel wreath, which helps place it in the earlier part of the reign.

The reverse displays the denomination "20 FRANCS" within a wreath, with the date below and a small mint mark and privy marks near the rim. On this type the year 1857 appears on the reverse. The coin is struck in gold of about .900 fineness and weighs roughly 6.45 grams, with a reeded (or lettered) edge; genuine pieces show crisp detail and the warm color of high-purity gold.

Because the 20 francs Napoleon was minted in very large numbers over many years, most common dates are valued primarily as gold bullion, trading close to the melt value of their gold content plus a modest collector premium. Ordinary circulated examples are among the most affordable and liquid classic gold coins in the world.

Premiums rise for scarcer dates and mint marks, for early bare-head issues in high grade, and for coins with strong original luster and minimal wear. Condition, specific year, and mint (Paris versus Strasbourg and other branches) all affect price, so a common well-worn coin and a rare high-grade date can differ widely. Because gold coins of this type have been counterfeited, values quoted for genuine, accurately graded pieces should be treated as approximate and checked against current gold prices and recent sales.