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1 Franc - Chambre de Commerce de Marseille 13
| Issuer | Chambre de Commerce de Marseille |
|---|---|
| Year | 1917 |
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| Reference(s) | JP#79-70/71/72 |
| Obverse description | Blue and pink letterpress note enclosed within a zigzag-edged border and elaborate guilloche frame. A central oval cartouche carries the denomination UN FRANC in large red letterpress type, flanked by two circular vignettes — at left, a helmeted allegorical female head set within a cogwheel symbolising industry; at right, a bare-headed allegorical female head within a plain roundel — with the coat of arms of Marseille placed at the base of the cartouche. Signature lines for Le Trésorier and Les Membres Délégués appear below the denomination, and a pink underprint repeats the issuer's name across the field. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | CHAMBRE DE COMMERCE DE MARSEILLE UN FRANC Le Trésorier Les Membres Délégués Série B-R 15,932 |
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| Comments |
French Chambers of Commerce were authorized to issue emergency small-denomination notes in 1914 after hoarding stripped coins from circulation almost overnight. Marseille's Chamber was among the most prolific issuers, producing multiple series across the war years to meet chronic demand from a port city handling enormous wartime freight and labor traffic. The Moullot printing house — a well-established Marseille lithographic firm — handled production locally, which was unusual; many provincial chambers farmed this work out to Paris printers.
The JP#79-70/71/72 reference covers three distinct varieties of this type, differentiated by serial number placement or watermark variation. Worth confirming which variety is in hand before cataloging.