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10 Heller Melk
| Issuer | Melk, City of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1920 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is divided into two distinct zones. The left zone presents a triptych-style letterpress vignette in blue-grey ink: on the left panel stands a uniformed soldier dated '1914', the central panel bears a guilloche oval overprint in red with the town name 'MELK' below, and the right panel shows a blacksmith at an anvil dated '1920', together evoking the transition from wartime to peacetime labour. The right zone carries the denomination inscription in Gothic script — 'Gutschein über Zehn Heller' — with the numeral '10' set in a red panel, validity notice 'Gültig bis 31. Dezember 1920', and a counterfeiting warning, all framed by ornamental red scrollwork. The designer credit 'Entwurf: Radierer Walter Prinzl, Melk' appears in small text at the lower left margin. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse is printed in black on plain white paper within a decorative rectangular border of repeating geometric motifs. The upper portion carries a six-line quotation in Gothic script attributed to 'Ing. Franz Walenta', followed by a guarantor clause stating the undersigned partners are liable for redemption in legal tender. Three handwritten signatures appear in the lower portion across the full width of the note. The printer's imprint 'Hermes Buch- & Kunstdruckerei Wien XVII' is set in small type at the bottom centre. |
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| Comments |
Melk issued this Heller note as part of Austria's extraordinary Notgeld proliferation of 1920 — a period when hundreds of municipalities printed their own emergency small change to address a catastrophic coin shortage in the post-war republic. The Hermes Buch- & Kunstdruckerei in Vienna was one of the commercial printers that handled substantial volume for these local issues, and Walter Prinzl's dual credit as both designer and engraver is consistent with the tighter production budgets of smaller Gemeinden.
Melk's series attracted collector interest almost immediately; Austrian Notgeld of this period was actively marketed to philatelists and notaphilists even as it circulated, which means survivor rates are comparatively high.