Catalog
1 Rupie
| Issuer | Kaiserliches Gouvernement von Deutsch-Ostafrika |
|---|---|
| Year | 1915 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Reverse description | Plain typographic layout on unadorned cream paper within a single-rule rectangular border. The serial number appears twice in large numerals, at top centre and bottom right. The main text block is set in two languages: German above and Swahili below, both attesting that the value of the note is fully deposited with the Imperial Government of German East Africa. Series letter 'C' appears at left and right margins flanking the Swahili text. A counterfeiting warning in German occupies the lower text block, and a small printer's imprint box reading 'Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Zeitung G.m.b.H. Daressalam' appears at lower left. |
| Reverse lettering | Der Gegenwert dieser Banknote ist bei dem Kaiserlichen Gouvernement von Deutsch-Ostafrika voll hinterlegt. Kadri ya noti hii imewekwa sahihi katika Kaiserliches Gouvernement von Deutsch-Ostafrika Wer Banknoten nachmacht oder verfälscht oder nachgemachte oder verfälschte sich verschafft und in Verkehr bringt, wird mit Zuchthaus nicht unter 2 Jahren bestraft DEUTSCH-OSTAFRIKANISCHE ZEITUNG G.M.B.H. DARESSALAM |
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| Comments |
Printed at the offices of the Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Zeitung in Dar es Salaam, this note is a product of genuine wartime isolation. By 1915, the British naval blockade had severed German East Africa from any external supply of currency or printing materials, forcing Governor Heinrich Schnee's administration to improvise with what was locally available — a newspaper press and whatever paper stock could be sourced in-colony.
The series is sometimes called Buschgeld — bush money — by collectors. Lettow-Vorbeck's forces used these notes in the field throughout the East Africa campaign.