1 Franc - Chambre de Commerce des Basses-Alpes 04

The Chambres de Commerce emergency notes of 1917 exist because the French state simply could not produce enough small-denomination coinage during the war — metal was going to munitions, and the public was hoarding what little circulated. Regional chambers stepped in as quasi-official issuers under a framework loosely authorized by the government, each producing their own fractional notes with local printers. Basses-Alpes, one of France's least populous departments, turned to Moullot & fils aîné in Marseille, a firm better known for lithographic commercial work than security printing.

The watermark is the only serious anti-counterfeiting measure on the note — not unusual for the series, given the haste of production.