Dupré, (Augustin), and (Bertrand) Verlac. OBSERVATIONS RÉLATIVES AU MÉMOIRE QUE LA COMMISSION GÉNÉRALE DES MONNOYES ET LE MINISTRE DES CONTRIBUTIONS PUBLIQUES ONT PRÉSENTÉ À LA CONVENTION NATIONALE, LE 30 OCTOBRE 1792. SUR LA REFONTE DES MONNOYES ET LES NOUVELLES EMPREINTES. PRÉSENTÉES À LA CONVENTION NATIONALE, PAR DUPRÉ GRAVEUR GÉNÉRAL DES MONNOYES DE FRANCE. RÉDIGÉES PAR VERLAC HOMME DE LOI. No publication information given, 1793. 8vo, self-covered and stitched. (2), 74 pages; errata leaf, with one contemporary handwritten correction; one large folding table. Untrimmed. Very good or so. A rare publication of exceptional historical interest. Augustin Dupré (1748–1833), remains one of the most important engravers of French coins in modern history, and his designs for early U.S. medals (mostly notably the Libertas Americana) have ensured his lasting fame in the western hemisphere. An engraver by trade, Dupré began to work on medals in the early 1770s and quickly became adept. Notable works include several classic medals of the Comitia Americana series: those for Nathanael Greene, John Paul Jones and Daniel Morgan, as well as the related Diplomatic Medal and the Libertas Americana medal. Had the last been his only contribution to the field of American medals, he justly would have remained famous in this country. During the French Revolution, however, he became interested in applying his ideas to the new national coinage that was under discussion. After considerable discussion and debate, he was appointed the 14th graveur général des monnaies on July 11, 1791. Dupré’s neoclassical designs would win him fame and admiration that continue to this day. The present work was written with educational reformer Bertrand Verlac, an influential homme de loi and functionary within the Ministry of the Navy. It is a detailed response to a report to the Convention Nationale on the redesign of the coinage. Written at the height of the French Revolution, it is an important statement of Dupré’s beliefs and artistic vision, very much tempered by the practicalities of doing business in such an atmosphere without literally losing one’s head. Dupré managed to retain his position through these turbulent times, continuing in the role of graveur général until being replaced by Pierre-Joseph Tiolier in 1803. Dupré’s 1793 Observations is known primarily from institutional holdings and is virtually unheard of on the secondary market. Little-known in the numismatic world, it is unlisted in the usual bibliographies, unmentioned by Lipsius at the end of the eighteenth century and by Dekesel at the beginning of the twenty-first. A notable opportunity.