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1 Franc - Chambre de Commerce de Cognac 1916
| Issuer | Chambre de Commerce de Cognac |
|---|---|
| Year | 1916 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Franc |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
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| 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 |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is printed in blue on a pink-red guilloche underprint. A large central oval vignette presents a riverside view of Cognac, with boats moored along the Charente river and the town's quayside buildings and bridge visible in the background, executed in fine letterpress line engraving. The denomination 1 FRANC is overprinted in large red letters across the upper portion of the oval. Circular medallions at left and right each contain a stylised monogram, and the redemption clause is set in three lines of text beneath the central vignette. |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Watermark |
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| Comments |
The Chambres de Commerce emergency notes of the First World War occupy a strange administrative niche: issued not by a bank but by a regional trade body, they existed because the French state had effectively abandoned small denomination coinage by 1914–1915, with silver and bronze coins hoarded or melted almost immediately after mobilization. Cognac's chamber was one of dozens forced into the business of money by necessity, not mandate.
B. Arnaud of Villeurbanne — a printer best known for commercial and municipal work — handled much of this regional emergency issue work in the Rhône corridor. The watermark is the only concession to security on what is, bluntly, a locally-trusted IOU printed in volume.