A. Jandorf & Co. was one of Berlin's major department store chains in the late Wilhelmine period — the same firm whose flagship store on Moritzplatz was later absorbed by Karstadt in 1926. Like many German retailers and industrial employers of the early twentieth century, Jandorf issued private token coinage for internal use, typically to control canteen purchases or advance wages against future pay. Iron was the material of necessity rather than choice; wartime metal restrictions during 1914–1918 pushed countless German issuers away from brass and copper.
A. Jandorf & Co. was one of Berlin's major department store chains in the late Wilhelmine period — the same firm whose flagship store on Moritzplatz was later absorbed by Karstadt in 1926. Like many German retailers and industrial employers of the early twentieth century, Jandorf issued private token coinage for internal use, typically to control canteen purchases or advance wages against future pay. Iron was the material of necessity rather than choice; wartime metal restrictions during 1914–1918 pushed countless German issuers away from brass and copper.