A bell tower in the French town of Montélimar on a coin of Monaco is no geographical slip: Montélimar was the chief town of the Duchy of Valentinois, a title the Princes of Monaco have borne for almost four centuries. The 2026 commemorative 2 euros is devoted to this Grimaldi fief.

The story begins in 1642, when King Louis XIII created the Duchy of Valentinois by letters patent from lands in the province of Dauphiné that he had granted to Prince Honoré II. The fief was part of Monaco’s rapprochement with France, and Honoré II was formally received in Montélimar in 1646. Today the title of Duke of Valentinois is held by Prince Albert II.

At the centre of the national side stands the bell tower of the Collegiate Church of Sainte-Croix, flanked by the Grimaldi arms and the cross-topped orb from Montélimar’s coat of arms. The field carries «MONACO» and «2026», with «DUCHÉ DE VALENTINOIS» along the lower rim. The design is by engraver Joaquin Jimenez and the coin is struck by the Monnaie de Paris; the common side shows Luc Luycx’s map of Europe.

Released on 16 June 2026 in a mintage of only 15,000, the coin was issued in proof quality alone. For collectors of Monaco’s commemorative 2-euro coins it belongs to the cycle on the ancient Grimaldi fiefs, and in a Monaco history collection it tells how the Grimaldi family came to hold a French ducal title.

Proof is not a grade but a striking method: polished dies produce a mirror field against which the relief of the bell tower and the arms stands out with particular sharpness. Such coins are made specifically for collectors.

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