10 Pfennig - Eschwege

Eschwege issued zinc notgeld during the acute coin shortages of World War I, when imperial small change was hoarded or melted almost as fast as it was struck. Municipal issues like this one filled the gap at the street level — grocers, transit operators, and market vendors all depended on locally issued token coinage to keep transactions moving. Zinc was the material of last resort, cheap and easy to stamp but prone to corrosion, which is why survivors in decent condition are less common than the original mintages suggest.