France 2021 Silver Proof coin Vermeer Girl with Pearl

Monnaie de Paris pays tribute to the major masterpieces of French museums or having been painted in France.

The obverse represents Vermeer's famous work "The Girl with a Pearl Earring".

The "Museum Masterpiece" stamp that defines this series has been added to the top of the coin and blends in with the work. At the bottom of the painting, the façade of the Jeu de Paume museum in Paris, where the work was first exhibited outside the Netherlands 100 years ago, in 1921, has been engraved. The sumptuous frame surrounding the work was created by the engravers of Monnaie de Paris.The name of the work and the artist also complete the decoration. The year 2021 appears at the top left.

 The reverse is common to the series. It depicts several views of many major French museums. An interior view of the Musée d’Orsay, on the top left, is recognizable by its distinctive clock. Beside that is a view of the façade of the Louvre as seen from the Napoleon courtyard where the pyramid is located. Below these two elements, a fresco shows the Hôtel Salé, which houses the Picasso Museum. The lower portion of the reverse side features a view of the façade of Hôtel Biron, the current Rodin Museum, and above, the famous Centre Pompidou stairway. The face value and the words “République Française” are also inscribed on the reverse side.