Karlstadt am Main issued this notgeld piece in 1917 as the German imperial war economy stripped municipal circulation of nearly all base metal coinage. Zinc was the compromise material — abundant enough to strike, but notoriously prone to corrosion, which explains why uncorroded survivors are harder to find than the mintage might suggest. The nickel-plated variant was almost certainly a production experiment rather than a planned issue, as Funck documents it as a secondary variety rather than an independent emission.
Karlstadt am Main issued this notgeld piece in 1917 as the German imperial war economy stripped municipal circulation of nearly all base metal coinage. Zinc was the compromise material — abundant enough to strike, but notoriously prone to corrosion, which explains why uncorroded survivors are harder to find than the mintage might suggest. The nickel-plated variant was almost certainly a production experiment rather than a planned issue, as Funck documents it as a secondary variety rather than an independent emission.