GET TO WORK

During the two World Wars, the 5, 10 and 20-franc notes celebrated France’s domestic virtues. Allegorical figures gave way to realistic scenes depicting workers. A miner, shepherd and peasant woman took centre stage, set against a rural background. In a wartime context, the banknotes’ iconography was intended to glorify the people, who would emerge victorious from these difficult times through their hard work.

The smaller denominations depicted occupations that were characteristic of the economy at the time. Introduced to replace the 20-franc coin that people preferred to hoard for better days, the 1942-type “fisherman” 20-franc note, designed by the artists Lucien Jonas, featured very realistic imagery.
In the foreground, a fisherman wearing a red raincoat pulls on a rope. He takes up nearly half the banknote, while on the left, we can see a view of the port of Concarneau (Finistère).
On the reverse, two Breton women in traditional dress carry a child in front of a calvary, while the landscape in the background shows Pointe de Pen'March.
The banknotes are midway between allegories and portraits and differ markedly from the traditional denominations in their composition, choice of iconography and the realistic depiction of the scene.