101204 | FRANCE. Metric System bronze electrotype Medal.
Details
101204 | FRANCE. Metric System bronze electrotype Medal. Dated 1840 (made likely circa late 19th century). Commemorating the compulsory adaptation to the metric system (69mm, 112.49 g, 12h). After Penin.
A TOUS LES TEMPS A TOUS LES PEUPLES (for all times, for all people), allegorical representation of France standing slightly left upon ruler (marked CINQ CENTIMETRES), and holding ruler and weight marked K (kilogram); in six lines in exergue, CONVENTION NATIONALE / DECRET DU 14 THERMIDOR AN 1 DE LA REPUBLIQUE Fr / LOUIS PHILIPPE 1. ROI DES FRANCAIS / 1 JANVIER 1840 USAGE EXCLUSIF / DES MESURES DECIMALES / LOI DU 4 JUILLET 1837 R /UNITÉ DES MESURES / UNITE DES MESURES, nude Genius, holding banner and oversized compass, flying right, head left; representation of the globe below, tilted at a 45º angle. Edge: Seam slightly evident in spots; otherwise plain.
Cf. Collignon 1173 (for prototype). Choice About Uncirculated. Glossy brown surfaces, with a good deal of shimmering brilliance; a hint of light rub on the high points is noted, along with a few scattered, minor marks.
Following the French Revolution and during the Napoleonic years of France, there were extreme advancements toward a decimal-based standardization of measurement, even so far as time and the reckoning of the calendar. Though various acts set this motion in place, and numerous internal struggles seemingly slowed the progress, the date of 1840 was finally set for the system to be in place. Now, the metric system is the dominant manner in which weights and measurements are administered throughout the world, with only places such as the United States, Canada, the UK, Liberia, and Myanmar being on hybrid or differing systems.
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