Les assignats de soie de Jolivet

Considering the huge amount of so-called "assignats" issued during the first french Revolution (from 1789 up to 1793), it appeared of the utmost importance to fight against counterfeits. Hence was organised a national contest with the specific purpose of finding and promoting improvements in paper money making. One of the most amazing project to enter this competition was the silk assignat by Jolivet. This assignat, of outstanding rarity, was merely known until 1981 in two specimens. In 2004, the discovery of a new and unpublished variant type incited to reconsider the past studies and has led to the precise historical and technical description of the six remaining « assignats de soie de Jolivet ».