1 Sol - Francis II

Obsidional piece poured in Luxembourg-city by the Austrian occupant during the Siege of Luxembourg by the troops of French revolutionaries. This sol of necessity was casted during the first months of the year 1795 in a mold of sand.

The field marshal Bender, 82 years old at the time, had 12,000 men under his command and was well organized to defend the city . But he had failed to set up a cash for the besieged city and funds ran out of money from the beginning of the siege. To counter this difficulty, the Marshal decided on January 13, 1795 to proceed to the emission of obsidional coins with the money of the churches and the superfluous metal of the guns. The capitulation was signed on June 7, 1795.

Cannon bronze piece whose weight varies greatly (16 - 23.2 g)

Period fakes can be distinguished from official pieces by the following characteristics:
 

• Weight: lower weight, usually lower than 16 grams
   

• Diameter: slightly smaller than the official pieces, 30 mm instead of 31 mm
   

• Casting: more mediocre and less neat
   

• Color: slightly darker, brownish
   

Variants:
Mr. G. Cumont published in 1894 in the Belgian numismatic review a variant that differs in the shape of the shield whose sides are triple rib. The reverse shows a bomb instead of the "I" under the date. Weight: 15g.

Revue belge de numismatique, 1894, page 478, pl. XI, fig. 7

Probst mistakenly printed this piece in the last Prifix but gives the description of the usual piece. Weiller does not mention this variant, but it is described by Bernays and Vannerus (No. 264, p.412) and in the catalog of currencies published in 1970 by the numismatic circle of the G-D of Luxembourg (p. 96, n° 264)