The europa was a token coinage created in 1928 by Joseph Archer [fr], a politician and industrialist from the Nièvre region in France. The currency was promoted by Philibert Besson [fr], the elected deputy for the Haute-Loire who, along with Archer, was an influential figure in the European federalist movement. The coins were minted in the name of a hypothetical "Federated States of Europe" (États fédérés d'Europe). Unlike contemporary currencies based on the gold standard, the europa was intended to derive its notional value from its value in labour.

A one-Europa coin

The currency never circulated except unofficially between federalists of the Nièvre region. Two denominations were produced, both depicting Louis Pasteur and a map of Europe on the obverse and reverse respectively: one valued at 1 europa and another at 1/10 of a europa.

Further reading

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  • Calligaro, Oriane (2013). Negotiating Europe: EU promotion of Europeanness since the 1950s. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 9781137369901.
  • Dousset, Jean-Luc (2013). Philibert Besson: Le fou qui avait raison. Le Puy-en-Velay: Editions Jeanne d'Arc. ISBN 9782362620300.
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