FRANCE - FRANCE Third Republic (1870-1940). Satirical essay on the 5 franc module "Mac Mahon", 1st type, recessed edge 1874, Brussels (Würden). MAC-MAHON I - SEPTENNAT. Nude head to left of Mac Mahon, signature NAPOLEON F. Rv. FRENCH REPUBLIC. Crowned shield, resting on a sword and a goupillon in saltire, under an archbishop's hat (green galero with tassels of twenty); with the Legion of Honour below. Below 5 - F, (date) ESSAI and a cock. GEM (2nd type only) - G (see 749 and 1989 edition) - Maz (see 2339) - VG (see 3858) - Schweyer p.493; Silver bronze - 22.9 g - 37.1 mm - 6 h Special coinage on a silvered bronze blank with the edge inscribed: DIEU ROTEGE LA PRUSSE (sic!). Coin strike. With the first reverse. Matt patina. Small dings on the listels and in the fields. Rare and poorly referenced. TTB to Superb. Christian Schweyer, Histoire des monnaies satiriques, 2016, sheds light on the symbols present: NAPOLEON F[ecit] on the right is for "fait maréchal par Napoléon III" in 1859. The shield on the reverse combines lilies for his legitimist convictions, an eagle for his career under the Second Empire and, finally, a liberty bonnet, especially for the Republic, of which he became President. The sword and pin symbolise the alliance between the Army and the Church, the country's conservative forces. The royal crown is there in anticipation of a new Restoration. The other elements show the religious nature of the personage. These satirical coins come from the workshop of C. Würden in Brussels and were minted by Menning et C°.