This series has presented a wide range of women presented on coins and numismatics. Whether a real living being or an allegorical figure or even an idea or representation of the everyday female, we have discovered that women are the heartbeat of the hobby. This next entry is no different as we look at what seems like a reference to just any female, but rather it is a body of work created by an artist whose works became more popular after his death. Author Ron Guth will help us navigate this story from Whitman Publishing’s 100 Greatest Women on Coins series.
#63 – Native Woman
While the publication lists this entry as “Native Woman,” it refers to a body of work from post-Impressionist artist Paul Gauguin. The works were produced from 1891 until his death in the early 1900s. From 1891 to 1893, Gauguin moved to Tahiti to escape civilized life, but found that it was as picturesque as he thought. However, he enjoyed his time in French Polynesia and focused entirely on painting native women, which thematically was a major shift in his focus of work.
Gauguin would also write Noa Noa: The Tahitian Journal, a work that would describe his life and some of the history of the people of Tahiti and their homeland. His more famous works, recognized and known for their bright colors and sensuality, include Woman of the Mango (1892), By the Sea (1892), Spirit of the Dead Watching (1892), and Woman Holding a Fruit (1893).
After returning to Paris for a brief time, Gauguin would go back to Tahiti from 1895-1901. It was during that time in 1897 that he would create his largest work, Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? This work would be a conglomeration of religious and humanistic symbolism that featured native men and women. By 1901, Gauguin would move to Hiva ‘Oa in the Marquesas Islands and live the remainder of his days.
Commemorating the 100th anniversary of Gauguin’s death, France produced one-and-a-half and 20 euros coins in 2003. The 20-euro gold coin depicted a reproduction of his painting, Woman Holding a Fruit.
According to Guth, collecting difficulty for both denominations issued in 2003 is easy. Both coins can be found online, with the silver one-and-a-half euro being the more affordable of the two. The 20-euro gold coin can run northwards of $1,000.00.