Catalog
10 Centimes
| Issuer | Ville de Blida (Commune of Blida, Department of Alger) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1916 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Paper |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Printed in dark brown on orange-red paper, the obverse presents a plain rectangular border enclosing all text in a letterpress typeset layout. The heading "VILLE DE BLIDA" appears at the top, followed by a two-line authorisation text referencing the Municipal Council deliberation of 5 October 1916. The large denomination "0fr.10" occupies the lower centre, flanked on the right by the mayoral reference "LE MAIRE" and accompanied by a handwritten mayoral signature. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Printed in dark brown on orange-red paper, the reverse carries an ornate oval vignette at centre bearing the municipal coat of arms of Blida — a crowned shield with crescent motifs and floral quartering — enclosed within scrollwork corner ornaments and a decorative outer border. A curved inscription running around the oval conveys the redemption clause. The printer's imprint "SILEM - ALGER" appears at the lower right margin. |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
Ville de Blida issued this emergency fractional note in 1916 under the acute small-change shortage that gripped French Algeria — and much of France itself — once wartime metal hoarding stripped bronze and nickel coins from everyday commerce. Municipal and cooperative bodies across Algeria were authorized to plug the gap with locally printed bons de monnaie, and Blida, a market town in the Mitidja plain about fifty kilometers southwest of Algiers, was one of dozens that did so.
Silem printed from Algiers, and the press run for these low-denomination communal issues was typically modest, making survivors disproportionately scarce relative to their historical obscurity.