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1 Franc - Chambre de Commerce du Havre 76
| Issuer | Chambre de Commerce du Havre |
|---|---|
| Year | 1917 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Plain cream ground with the obverse design visible in ghost through the thin paper stock, carrying a single block of italic letterpress text in French setting out the legal redemption conditions for notes still in circulation, and a bold red typeset numeral '1F' overprinted at centre as the denomination underprint. |
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| Protection type | Watermark |
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| Comments |
French chambers of commerce became emergency issuers during the First World War after the state withdrew small-denomination coinage from circulation — metal was needed for the war effort, and the public was left scrambling for change. The Havre chamber was among the more active issuers in the Seine-Inférieure, producing a tiered series of necessity notes that saw genuine heavy commercial use in the port city's busy trading environment.
Oberthur in Rennes was the natural choice for quality provincial emergency notes of this period, handling similar commissions across dozens of French departments simultaneously. The watermark security was modest but sufficient for the low denomination and short intended lifespan — most chamber issues were officially demonetized within a few years of the Armistice.