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1 Mark Weinhandlung Otto Seidel

Issuer Otto Seidel Weinhandlung, Schmölln
Year 1921
Type Local banknote
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Obverse lettering Gut=Schein
Der Teufel nur nach Silber tracht'
Jch hab' Papier=geld mir gemacht
1 Mark
Und wechsle gerne diesen Schein
Auch gegen Reichsgeld bei mir ein.
Verfalltag: 1. Dezemb. 1921
Otto Seidel-SCHMÖLLN S/A
Reverse description The reverse carries a bold, full-field vignette on an ochre ground rendered in a woodcut-inspired letterpress style. A red devil figure, horned and reptilian in form, crouches over a large silver coin bearing a stylised 'M' (Mark) monogram within a dotted beaded border, directly illustrating the verse on the obverse that alludes to the devil coveting silver while the issuer offers paper money.
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Comments

Schmölln's Otto Seidel wine merchant issued this 1 Mark Notgeld in 1921 as the hyperinflationary spiral was already well underway. Private traders, restaurants, and retailers across Thuringia issued their own emergency money during this period precisely because Reichsbank coin and low-denomination paper had effectively vanished from circulation — hoarded, melted, or simply inadequate against rising prices.

A wine merchant as currency issuer is not unusual for the period, but it is a sharp illustration of how completely the small-change crisis had broken down normal monetary infrastructure by 1921.

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