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1 Rupie Pattern
| Issuer | German East Africa |
|---|---|
| Year | 1913 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Decimalized Rupee (1904-1916) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
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| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse closely mirrors the obverse in design, featuring the denomination '1 RUPIE' in two prominent lines at centre, with the date '1913' below and the mint mark 'A' at the base. The legend 'DEUTSCH OSTAFRIKA' arcs along the upper rim. Two palm fronds, bound at their stems, flank the central inscription symmetrically. A beaded border encircles the design, consistent with the obverse treatment. This near-identical double-sided layout is characteristic of the pattern trials produced for this series. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Lettering |
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| Additional information |
The aluminum rupie patterns of 1913 were produced in Berlin as part of a broader colonial monetary reform discussion — the existing silver rupie was chronically undersupplied relative to demand in Deutsch-Ostafrika, and lighter, cheaper alloys were under consideration to ease production costs. Nothing came of it; the outbreak of war in 1914 made the question moot. Lettow-Vorbeck's forces eventually resorted to improvised emergency coinage struck from whatever metal was available at Tabora.
Schaaf 722/G 1 places this among a documented series of alloy trials. Survivors are rare outside institutional collections.