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1 Franc - Chambre de Commerce de Cette 34
| Issuer | Chambre de Commerce de Cette |
|---|---|
| Year | 1915 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Franc (1795-1959) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | CHAMBRE DE COMMERCE DE CETTE Délibération du 11 Août 1915 approuvée par le Ministre des Finances et le Ministre du Commerce UN FRANC Le Trésorier Le Président SÉRIE 139 0,946 IMP B.ARNAUD LYON-PARIS |
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| Protection type | Watermark |
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| Comments |
Cette — now Sète — was a major Mediterranean port, and its Chamber of Commerce was among dozens of French regional bodies that began issuing small-denomination emergency paper in 1914–15 when metal coinage effectively vanished from circulation, hoarded by the public and consumed by wartime industrial demand. The Banque de France had no mechanism to fill the gap quickly at the local level, so the chambers stepped in under a temporary legal authorization that few expected to last as long as it did.
B. Arnaud of Lyon was a prolific printer of this type of billet de nécessité, supplying numerous southern chambers during the war years. The watermarked paper was a modest deterrent to forgery given the low face value.