125 Livres Assignat

The 125 livres denomination was one of the more unusual face values in the assignat series — an awkward figure that reflects the Revolutionary government's repeated, increasingly desperate attempts to recalibrate the currency against accelerating inflation. By 1793, assignat production was running well ahead of any realistic asset backing, the original premise of land-secured paper money having collapsed under the pressure of war finance and émigré property disputes.

Gatteaux, a medallist by training, contributed designs to several assignat denominations. The watermark was among the few meaningful anti-counterfeiting measures available; forged assignats — including those produced in Britain as deliberate economic warfare — were a serious and documented problem throughout the period.