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1 000 000 Mark Reichsbanknote
| Issuer | Reichsbank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | A typeset letterpress note printed in black on white paper with a green underprint to the right half. The denomination "EINE MILLION MARK" is set in large bold Gothic type at the top centre, above the payment clause in Fraktur script. Two circular Reichsbankdirektorium seals bearing the Imperial eagle are positioned at lower left and lower right, flanking a block of facsimile directorate signatures, with the serial number printed in red at the bottom centre. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Reichsbanknote Eine Million Mark zahlt die Reichsbankhauptkasse in Berlin gegen diese Banknote dem Einlieferer. Vom 1. September 1923 ab kann diese Banknote aufgerufen und unter Umtausch gegen andere gesetzliche Zahlungsmittel eingezogen werden Berlin, den 9. August 1923 Reichsbankdirektorium Wer Banknoten nachmacht oder verfälscht oder nachgemachte oder verfälschte sich verschafft und in Verkehr bringt, wirt mit Zuchthaus nicht unter zwei Jahren bestraft (Translation: Reich banknote one million mark the Reichsbank main cash office in Berlin pays the consignor against this banknote. From September 1, 1923, this banknote can be called up and withdrawn in exchange for other legal tender Berlin, August 9, 1923 Reichsbank Directorate Anyone who copies or falsifies banknotes, or procures and puts counterfeit or falsified banknotes into circulation, shall be sentenced to imprisonment for not less than two years) |
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| Comments |
By August 1923, when this note entered circulation, the Reichsbank was printing on one side only to save time — double-sided printing had become a bottleneck. The 1,000,000 Mark denomination, which would have been an almost incomprehensible sum just two years earlier, was already losing purchasing power faster than it could be spent. Within weeks of issue, it was effectively worthless as a transaction instrument.
Overprinting of existing lower-denomination plates was common elsewhere in the hyperinflation series, but P#101 was a fresh design — one of dozens rushed into production that year as the Reichsbank struggled to keep denominations ahead of daily price movements.