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1 Rupie
| Issuer | Kaiserliches Gouvernement von Deutsch-Ostafrika |
|---|---|
| Year | 1915 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Decimalized Rupee (1904-1916) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Printer | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Imperial eagle vignette at upper left, with a printed signature at right. The text 'Kraft besonderer Ermächtigung' appears below the date at left. Serial letter prefix 'L' is present, identifying this as an emergency wartime issue of the Kaiserliches Gouvernement von Deutsch-Ostafrika. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Plain paper ground with two text blocks in German and Swahili respectively, attesting that the note's value is fully backed by the Imperial Government of German East Africa ('Kaiserliches Gouvernement von Deutsch-Ostafrika'). A counterfeit warning in German occupies the lower portion of the note. The serial number and letter 'L' are repeated at top left and bottom right within a simple rectangular border. |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
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| Comments |
Deutsch-Ostafrika's 1915 emergency currency is among the more unusual products of World War I monetary improvisation. With the British naval blockade severing supply lines from Germany, Governor Heinrich Schnee's administration printed these notes locally in Dar es Salaam using whatever materials were at hand — including, in some series, paper derived from salvaged stock. The colony was effectively cut off, and its currency had to function in complete isolation from any metropolitan backing.
P#17 falls within the Rukwa series of wartime Gouvernementspapiergeld. Forgeries were produced during the period, and authentication of surviving examples requires scrutiny of the typeface and paper texture.