1 Franc

Madagascar's Gouvernement Général issued these emergency fractional notes in 1920 to address a severe coin shortage that had plagued the island since the First World War disrupted metal supplies from France. The 1 Franc denomination falls within a small series of necessité notes — emergency paper substitutes for coin — a format that colonial administrations across French territories adopted with varying degrees of success during this period.

Mouchon was among the most accomplished French engravers of his generation, best known for his 1900 Mouchon stamp type used across the French Republic and colonies. His involvement here is a curious footnote — a figure associated with postage stamp design lending his hand to emergency scrip.