General Engraver of Coins

What is an Engraver General?

The general engraver of coins is the person responsible for engraving a type of coin. He was responsible for executing the hallmarks, which were then sent to the directors of the mints. Some of the general engravers have their own different mints.

The Engraver General is housed in the Hôtel Central des Monnaies in Paris, but receives no fixed salary for his work. Only his workshop premises are provided by the State. He owns the workshop equipment, and is responsible for all personnel, foreman and labor costs.

The first general engraver was Marc Béchot, when Henri II instituted the office of general engraver in 1547.

On March 1, 2001, the position of Engraver General was abolished and replaced by that of Chief Engraver of the Mint. Since then, Gérard Buquoy (born June 5, 1944) has held the position of Head of the Engraving Department.

List of general engravers

1. Marc Béchot from 1547 to 1557
2. Claude de Héry from 1557 to 1582
3. Philippe Danfrie l'ancien from 1582 to 1590
4. The young Philippe Danfrie from 1590 to 1604
5. Philippe Danfrie l'ancien from 1604 to 1605
6. Nicolas Briot from 1605 to 1625
7. Pierre Regnier from 1625 to 1630
8. Jean Darmand, known as l'Orphelin, from 1630 to 1646
9. Jean Warin from 1646 to 1672
10. François Warin from 1672 to 1681
11. Joseph Roëttiers from 1682 to 1703
12. Norbert Roëttiers from 1704 to 1727
13. Joseph Charles Roëttiers from 1727 to 1753
14. Charles Norbert Roëttiers from 1753 to 1772
15. Joseph Charles Roëttiers from 1772 to 1774
16. Pierre-Simon-Benjamin Duvivier from 1774 to 1791
17. Augustin Dupré from An IV to An XI
18. Pierre-Joseph Tiolier from An XI to 1816
19. Nicolas-Pierre Tiolier from September 11, 1816 to December 31, 1842
20. Jacques-Jean Barre from January^1, 1843 to February 14, 1855
21. Désiré-Albert Barre February 27, 1855 - December 31, 1878
22. Bertrand Marchais Acting general engraver in Bordeaux, from October 4, 1870 to June 23, 1871
23. Jean-Auguste Barre January 1, 1879 - December 31, 1879
24. Jean Lagrange from 1880 to 1896
25. Henri-Auguste-Jules Patey from 1896 to 1930
26. Lucien Bazor from 1931 to 1958
27. Raymond Joly from October 1958 to April 1974
28. Émile Rousseau from April 1974 to February 1994
29. Pierre Rodier from February 3, 1994 to February 28, 2001
30. Gérard Buquoy March¹ to December 31, 2001
31. Serge Levet from 2002 to 2003
32. Hubert Lariviere from 2003 to 2010
33. Yves Sampo since 2011