Date: February 5, 1929
Size: 12 x 16 inches
Artist: Unknown
A stock certificate (also known as certificate of stock or share certificate) is a legal document that certifies ownership of a specific number of shares or stock in a corporation. This physical stock is for 60 thousand shares at 100 francs each and dated February 5, 1929. It would have been used to prove someone's entitlement to dividends, and required to effect the transfer of the shareholding. Although it used to be the only way to authenticate stock ownership, physical stock certificates such as these as no longer relevant because of online brokers and personally-directed accounts.
At the time, the person who owned this certificate would have held 6 million francs for Compagnie Francaise des Mines d'Or du Canada [Engl: French Gold Mines Company of Canada]! This sheet of shares comes from a French private collection and we think it would look fantastic framed in an office. The certificate is unlined and still has its original scalloped top margin.