Monnaie de Paris pays tribute to the major masterpieces of French museums or having been painted in France.

This rectangular commemorative coin struck from half a kilogram of silver is issued in honour of the Spanish artist Salvador Dalí (1904-1989) and his artwork “The Persistence of Memory”. The world-famous painting was created in 1931 and is also called“The Melting Time” or“The Soft Clocks”. It shows three melting clocks against a barren landscape, said to have been inspired by Dalí’s hometown of Port Lligat. Dalí is the undisputed master of surrealism and continues to enchant viewers today with his extravagant and surreal paintings.

The obverse represent Salvador Dali’s famous masterpiece“The Persistence of Memory”. The “Museum Masterpiece” stamp that defines this series has been added at the bottom right and blends with the work. In the background, the front of Beaubourg, where Salvador Dali has been the subject of several exhibitions, most recently in 2013, has been depicted. The name of the work and that of the artist also complete the decoration. The year 2021 appears on the left.

The reverse is common to the series. It depicts several views of many major French museums. An interior view of the Musée d’Orsay, on the top left, is recognisable by its distinctive clock. Beside that is a view of the façade of the Louvre as seen from the Napoleon courtyard where the pyramid is located. Below these two elements, a fresco shows the Hôtel Salé, which houses the Picasso Museum. The lower portion of the reverse side features a view of the façade of Hôtel Biron, the current Rodin Museum, and above, the famous Centre Pompidou stairway. The face value and the words “République Française”are also inscribed on the reverse side.