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1 000 000 Mark Reichsbanknote
| Issuer | Reichsbank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Dark brown on light brown and green underprint, with an intricate guilloche border of ornamental cross and floral motifs at each corner and along all four sides. The centre carries the large Gothic-script denomination 'Eine Million Mark' above a block of text in German indicating redemption terms at the Reichsbankhauptkasse in Berlin, with the date 'Berlin, den 20. Februar 1923' and the issuing authority 'Reichsbankdirektorium' below. Two circular Reichsbank eagle medallion stamps flank the signature panel, and the numeral '1.000.000' is set in bold Gothic type across the lower portion between the words 'Mark' on either side. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | REICHSBANKNOTE / Eine Million Mark / zahlt die Reichsbankhauptkasse in Berlin gegen diese Banknote dem Einlieferer / Vom 1. April 1924 ab kann diese Banknote aufgerufen und unter Umtausch gegen andere gesetzliche Zahlungsmittel eingezogen werden / Berlin, den 20. Februar 1923 / Reichsbankdirektorium / Mark 1.000.000 Mark |
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| Comments |
By August 1923, when this note entered circulation, the million-mark denomination was already losing ground to inflation before most examples had left the Reichsbank's counters. The German government's decision to fund passive resistance in the Ruhr — following the Franco-Belgian occupation in January 1923 — by printing money at scale is what broke the currency. This note is a direct product of that political choice, not merely an economic accident.
Pick 86 was printed at the Reichsdruckerei in Berlin. The series was short-lived; within weeks of issue, denominations in the billions were being prepared, and the million-mark note became functionally worthless before most specimens had time to circulate heavily.