FRANCE. Compagnie de Navigation Sud-Atlantique/"Pasteur" Bronze Medal, 1939. CHOICE UNCIRCULATED.
Ruedas-Unlisted (though see note on p. 280). Diameter: 67mm. Weight: 154.92 gms. By F. Bazin. Commemorating the Maiden Voyage of the "Pasteur" Service Line. Obverse: Bare head of Louis Pasteur right; to left and right, vignettes displaying pastoral and domestic scenes from the South Atlantic; Reverse: Perspective view from the right of the vessel breaking waves left. Edge: [triangle] BRONZE. Exceptional yellow-bronze matte surfaces and relief. A beautiful Art Deco design. RARE, especially with original round box of issue. Though initially intended to service routes in the South Atlantic, the Pasteur was soon thereafter pressed into wartime service during WWII, playing a major role in the transport of allied soldiers. She eventually passed under the control of shipping companies located in Germany, Greece, Saudi Arabia, and ultimately the Philippines, whereupon she-rechristened as the Filipinas Saudi I -capsized while being towed in the Indian Ocean in 1980.
Estimate: $100.00- $200.00