Illustration of a historical stamp for learning, shown at screen size. Not valid for postage.
How to read it
Francs and RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE along the bottom.
- 1RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE
- 21 F (franc)
- Inscription
- POSTE · 1F · RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE
- Meaning
- 1 F is one franc; RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE is the French Republic.
- Issued by
- French Republic
- Today
- France Flag of France
- Year
- 1876. The Sage type was introduced in 1876; this copy was used around 1900.
- Made by
- Jules-Auguste Sage (design, died 1908); Louis-Eugène Mouchon (engraving, died 1914)
One fact
Jules-Auguste Sage won a design competition in 1875; his two figures are allegories of Peace and Commerce.
Source and public-domain rule
Creators died more than 70 years ago. Designer and engraver died in the 1910s. Copyright lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years, counted from 1 January of the year after death. Every named designer and engraver of the stamp died before 1 January 1956; any contributor who was never named counts as anonymous, whose term is 70 years from publication, and the stamp was published before 1956. Legal sources: Directive 2006/116/EC, Art. 1(1) life + 70 years; Art. 1(3) anonymous works 70 years from publication; Art. 7(1) comparison of terms for works from outside the EU; Art. 8 terms run from 1 January, Switzerland, Norway.
Scan: Type Sage 1F.jpg on Wikimedia Commons (revision 1024528568), licence templates {{PD-art}} (a public-domain reason different from ours; both are recorded). Downloaded 2026-10-19, sha256 43ab1d1d6f64…; cropped and cleaned for this site. Facts checked 2026-10-19 against source 1 and source 2. Research record, not legal advice; a human rights review is pending. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
