In 1809, at the age of just three years old, in a town just 35 km east of the Eiffel Tower, Louis Braille blinded himself in one eye in an accident involving a stitching awl. It became infected, which spread to his second eye, and blinded him there as well. Not one to give up and wallow in pity, Braille dived into his education, excelling so much he obtained a scholarship to the Royal Institute for Blind Youth in Paris, which had been formed in 1785 as the first of its kind in the world.

While there, he began developing a tactile code that could be read using the fingertips. The idea actually came from French language expert, Charles Barbier, who had developed a basic, quite cumbersome system, but one that was fundamentally excellent. Braille completely reworked it, making it more compact, adaptable, and easier to read and implement. He continued to refine the system, including adding musical notation, until his death, likely of tuberculosis, at the age of just 43.

The system consists of a grid of just six raised dots in two columns of three. Different combinations of the dots denote individual letters. This fixed grid makes it easier to interpret at speed, with the boundary of each character pre-defined, allowing for full concentration on that space. The fingers can glide over lines of these six dot grids, forming words, and giving blind people the ability to read at a rate comparable to the sighted. It’s quite brilliant, and remains the premier system in use today. Quite the achievement.

Despite the obvious suitability of a coin strike for braille, there have been remarkably few issues for him, mainly just a few from countries like the US, India, and Belgium, back in 2009, celebrating 200 years since his birth. The latest addition is a more ambitious two-ounce silver affair from PiK Coins, and is a fine summation of the man’s life and work.

The reverse is dominated by a high-relief portrait of Louis Braille, dressed in the period style, and done in a black finish. Around it are multiple inscriptions, with his name, and dates of birth and death. These are also inscribed in Braille. In the background field is a Braille alphabet and numbers, all of which becomes visible under ultraviolet light, contrasting well against the black finish.

The obverse is fully black, consisting of the Cameroon state emblem, with the usual issue inscriptions surrounding it. Surrounding all of that is a border, containing a representative layout of a Braille keyboard, partly highlighted with UV colour as well. Hopefully, we’ll get some better images soon, but the video is a good one. This really is a well-thought-out design, featuring the inventor himself, and sparking interest in the clever Braille system. Well done. Available to order now.