Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
1 Franc - Chambres de Commerce de Granville et Cherbourg
| Issuer | Chambres de Commerce de Granville et Cherbourg |
|---|---|
| Year | 1920 |
| Type | Local banknote |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| 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 |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Brown and ochre letterpress note with a dense guilloche underprint bearing repeated text 'CHAMBRES DE COMMERCE DE GRANVILLE ET CHERBOURG' across the entire field. The title inscription is carried on a ribbon banner at the top, flanked by the dates 1920 and 1925, with the municipal arms of Granville (anchor motif) at lower left and those of Cherbourg (three stars) at lower right. The denomination 'UN FRANC' appears in large bold letters within a central dark panel, below which the exchangeability clause and the facsimile signatures of the two Chamber presidents are printed, with the series letter and serial number in a decorative cartouche at centre bottom. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Watermark |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
The joint issue by the Chambers of Commerce of Granville and Cherbourg reflects a practical wartime and postwar workaround — French small-denomination coinage had been hoarded out of circulation since 1914, and the state's own emergency issues couldn't keep pace with local demand. Regional chambers across France filled the gap with their own papier-monnaie, and this note is one product of that improvised system, printed locally by Yves Caraës rather than one of the large Paris houses.
The pairing of Granville and Cherbourg — two Norman ports with distinct commercial profiles — under a single emission is worth noting. Shared issues reduced production costs and broadened the note's acceptance across the Manche department.