Louis XVI (1774-1792). Gold Constitutionnel Louis d'or of 24 Livres, 1792-A (Paris). Bare head of king left. Rev. Guardian angel Genius inscribing the Constitution on a tablet (Fr 477; Gadoury 61; KM 617.1). In NGC holder graded XF 40. Scarce type. Value $4,000 - UP
On August 26, 1789, the French National Assembly issued the Declarations of the Rights of Man as the generalized precursor to a constitution that would bring an end to the excesses of the Ancien Regime. Not long after, on October 5, Louis XVI and his family were forcibly removed from Versailles and brought to the Tuileries Palace in Paris where it was thought that they would be more accountable to the people. After several drafts and much negotiation, on June 3, 1791, Louis XVI accepted a constitution that reorganized the state and abolished absolute rule, but preserved some of the king's powers, such as the nomination of ambassadors, military commanders, and ministers. However, a few weeks after recognizing the constitution, Louis XVI packed up his family and attempted to flee to Varennes in the dead of night. He was caught and brought back to Paris where he was seen as the betrayer of the moderate revolutionary element that would have preferred constitutional monarchy to radical republicanism. No longer willing to accept Louis XVI as a partner in governing France, the National Assembly tore up the Constitution of 1791 and abolished the monarchy on September 21, 1792. In the following year Louis XVI was found guilty of treason and executed by guillotine.

While the Constitution of 1791 remained in force, French coins were still struck in the name of Louis XVI featuring his buste nu ("naked bust") portrait type. However, traditional heraldic and personal royal reverse types were replaced by new ones more appropriate to the revolutionary age. On the louis d'or the reverse depicts the Genius of the Revolution inscribing a constitution (presumably the Constitution of 1791) and for this reason the coin is commonly known as the louis d'or constitutionnelle ("constitutional gold Louis"). The present louis d'or constitutionnelle is dated 1792 and was therefore struck after general French disillusionment with the king, but before the abolition of the monarchy.