In ancient times coins served both as a medium of exchange and as a means of propaganda. A coin minted for Brutus celebrates the Ides of March, a series of coins measures Hadrian's travels throughout his empire. The series of coins from the Roman Empire is large and varied, although toward the end the coinage became less than distinguished. With the decline of civilization and the economic stagnation following the collapse of the Roman Empire what coins were produced in Europe were insignificant as far as anything beyond their monetary value went.

The modern production of medals as distinct from coins began in Italy; certain artists began to produce coin-like objects to honor individuals. These large medals, or medallions, usually portrayed the subject on one side and on the reverse an allegorical representation of the subject's virtues or some event in the life of the commemorated person. These Italian medals were cast, not struck, casting not requiring the expense of engraving a die.

The kings of France were not slow to realize the advantages of medal production by the state to glorify its rulers and their accomplishments; the first significant steps were taken when in 1549 an edict of Henry II required that coins have placed on them the portrait of the king and the year of manufacture. The French engraved dies and struck their medals, a process they onsidered more suitable to large scale production and more likely to prevent unauthorized copying. In 1585 an edict of Henry III separated entirely the manufacture of medals from that of coins, establishing that the method of striking coins would be distinct from that used for producing coins.

Under Louis XIII medal-making flourished, with the medals from the gravers of Georges Dupre and his pupil Warin displaying a magnificence unknown before their time. Warin was named general director of the French mints and had among his responsibilities the direction of medal manufacture. Louis XIII died in 1643, but Warin survived him and continued his work during the early years of the reign of Louis XIV, beginning what was to become perhaps the most numerous series of medals in existence, more than five hundred medals in various sizes commemorating every aspect of that monarch's lengthy reign. A Histoire du R�gne de Louis le Grand par les m�dailles was published in 1702, illustrating and describing that series; the work was revised, corrected, and reissued in 1723 as M�dailles sur les principaux �v�nements du R�gne entier de Louis le Grand avec des explications historiques. Medal production continued under Louis XV, and a catalog of his medals was produced; the truncated reign of Louis XVI was not productive of many medals.

The first years of the French Revolution and those of the republic saw the production of many medals, and since the striking of them was no longer restrained, many engravers of mediocre talents exploited the events of the period, although the government production was limited to a very small number, and it was even proposed to sell the best medal-striking equipment the medal mint possessed.

The renaissance of French medal making truly began in Italy. General Bonaparte had won stunning victories over Austrian army after army, and while he was living the life of a victorious general in Milan the Milan mint struck medals commemorating the victories for which the French legislature had praised him. That first Napoleonic series consists of five medals, called "The Five Battles". Four of these medals were designed by a famous Italian artist named Appiani and punches for them prepared by the Italian engraver Lavy. The fifth medal was struck from a die engraved en creux by Salwirch, engraver at the Turin mint. A significant feature of these medals was the inscription unobtrusively placed on the medal edges: BONAPARTE GENERAL EN CHEF. While Bonaparte was adventuring in Egypt the Austrians drove the French out of north Italy; the punches for these medals were rescued from the Austrians and taken to Paris, where they were used a few years later to produced new dies. Apparently Salwirch's dies had been worn out in Italy; they were not used in Paris. There was no punch from which to make new dies.

Once Bonaparte came to power, the government monopoly on producing medals was reestablished. One of the savants who had accompanied General Bonaparte to Egypt was Vivant Denon, one of Josephine's older friends, a ci-devant who had escaped the guillotine by being out of France during the worst of the revolution (among other things vying in Italy with Alexander Hamilton, Marquess of Douglas, for Etruscan vases) and been rehabilitated, largely because of his friendship with the famous regicide and painter David. Denon was made director general of the central museum and became in 1803 the director of the medal mint. He undertook to establish the medallic history of the man who was soon to become Napoleon, Emperor of the French. Indeed, although there was a wonderful new start to the Napoleonic series of medals when Duvivier engraved and presented to the government the dies for his Treaty of Campo Formio, portraying a victorious General Bonaparte bringing home his booty from the Italian campaign, with the inscription Aux arts la victoire, "To the victor belong the arts" ;-) , the series had already been started in Italy, as is explained above.