Catalog
1 Mark
| Issuer | Gemeindekasse Freienohl |
|---|---|
| Year | |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Mark |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in red and black Gothic (Fraktur) script on a light blue guilloche underprint with a plain blue border. The large red Fraktur heading "Notgeldschein" dominates the upper portion, with "Freienohl" rendered in a larger red script below, flanked by the text "der Freiheit" to the left and "im Sauerland" to the right. At centre is a circular red official seal of the municipality bearing a stylised "S" on a shield, surrounded by the legend "SIGILLUM VRIGGENDOLE", with the redemption obligation text arranged in two columns to either side and a serial number and two manuscript signatures at the base. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is printed entirely in black on white paper in a tripartite layout. The left panel carries the denomination "1 Mark" and the issuing authority "Freienohl im Sauerland" in bold Fraktur lettering arranged vertically. The central panel presents a detailed black-and-white vignette of a Sauerland landscape, with a tall conifer in the foreground, a thatched farmstead set against wooded hills, and a deer standing at the foot of the tree. The right panel contains a calligraphic Fraktur verse attributed to F. W. Grimme, praising the beauty of the Sauerland region. |
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| Comments |
Freienohl is a small village in the Sauerland region of Westphalia, and its Gemeindekasse — the municipal treasury — issued notgeld like hundreds of other German local authorities during the inflationary chaos following World War I. These hyperlocal issues were often produced in tiny print runs, intended to address acute small-denomination coin shortages rather than serve any broader monetary function.
Parish-level notgeld from villages this small tends to survive in lower quantities than issues from nearby towns, simply because fewer were printed and fewer collectors were present to preserve them at the time.