Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
1 Franc - Chambre de Commerce de Béziers 34
| Issuer | Chambre de Commerce de Béziers |
|---|---|
| Year | 1914 |
| Type | Local banknote |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse shares the blue guilloche underprint of repeated chamber name text, enclosed within a bold black Greek-key meander border. A red vignette at the upper centre presents a grapevine branch bearing two grape clusters with foliage, evoking the Languedoc viticultural heritage of the Béziers region, while the denomination UN FRANC appears centrally in large black letterpress. The redemption clause, the circular heraldic stamp of the Chambre de Commerce de Béziers, and the engraver and designer credits occupy the lower portion. |
| Reverse lettering | UN FRANC CE BILLET DEVRA ÊTRE PRÉSENTÉ AU REMBOURSEMENT AVANT LE PREMIER OCTOBRE 1919 SAUF DÉCISION PROROGEANT CE DÉLAI J.MAGROU INV. CADENAT FR. SC. |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
Emergency fractional paper money flooded southern France in the weeks following the August 1914 mobilization, when coin hoarding stripped local commerce of its small change almost overnight. The Chambre de Commerce de Béziers was among the first provincial chambers to respond, authorizing this 1 franc note under powers granted by the French government to local commercial bodies when the Banque de France could not fill the gap fast enough.
Cadenat Frères, a Montpellier printer, handled production — a logical regional choice under wartime conditions. Jean Magrou, a sculptor and medallist from Béziers with genuine artistic credentials, provided the design.