Before CCGs¹ like Pokémon, little kids spent their allowances on Collectible Enamel Portraits (CEPs). They clutched their centimes and ran down to the corner store on Samedi.

“Une pack of CEPs, plez-vous!” they chirped. On the pavement outside, they’d rip open the paper bag, their eyes eagerly searching for Uncommon, Rare or, hopefully, Ultra Rare portraits. Cries of, “Tiens! She got Jean d’Arc!” or, “I’ll trade you three Louis XV for your Descartes²?” rang in the streets.

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¹Collectible card games.

² Modern trading would ask 10 Jean-Paul Satres for one Philippe Candeloro.