Currently residing in the Musée des Beaux-Arts of Mulhouse, in France, Flora and Zephyr is a painting by the artist William-Adolphe Bouguereau, completed in 1875 using oil-on-canvas. It depicts the Ancient Greek god of the west wind, Zephyr, embracing and kissing Chloris, a nymph. Chloris was known as Flora in Ancient Rome, hence the title.

Unusually, and quite handily, the original painting is circular, so the coin manages to pack the whole thing into its boundary, rather than crop it, as is the case with most pieces of art on coins. Zephyr has butterfly wings, and the original is a riot of colour. The coin takes a more classically numismatic route of giving the art some high-relief, and employing antique finishing instead.

We only have renders at present, but clearly, the design is a fine adaptation of the original art. The obverse carries a portrait of the artist, Bouguereau, surrounded by the usual issue inscriptions. All together, a nice release for the fine art fan, and one that follows this producer’s Leda and the Swan release from a few months ago. Not many dealers have these, but we noted Coins & More has it in stock.