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100 Kroner Great Norwegian Spitsbergen Coal Company
| Issuer | Store Norske Spitsbergen Kulkompani Aktieselskap |
|---|---|
| Year | 1973 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 100 Kroner |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Betalingsmerke for tilgodehavende lønn, utstedt av Store Norske Spitsbergen Kulkompani Aktieselskapet 100 HUNDRE KRONER 100 Merket er ugyldig utenfor Spitsbergen. Ubenyttede betalingsmerker blir ved ihendehaverens avreise fra Spitsbergen å tilbakelevere til kontoret mot beløpets godskrivning i lønnsoppgjør. Selskapets innløsningsplikt bortfaller etter nærmere kunngjøring på Spitsbergen. Styrets formann Kontorsjef. Spitsbergen. (Translation: Payment note issued by The Great Norwegian Spitsbergen Coal Company for due wages 100 kroner The note is invalid outside Spitsbergen. Unused payment notes must be returned upon the holder`s departure from Spitsbergen to the office against the amount being credited on the payroll. The company`s obligation ceases after further announcement on Spitsbergen. Chairman of the board. Office manager, Spitsbergen.) |
| Reverse description | The reverse is printed entirely in green on white paper, covered edge to edge with rows of repeating microtext 'STORENORSKESPITSBERGENKULKOMPANI' in letterpress. The large numeral '100' is formed in negative relief at the centre by an interruption in the repeating text pattern, creating a subtle but effective security underprint effect. |
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| Comments |
Store Norske Spitsbergen Kulkompani — the state-controlled Norwegian coal mining operator on Svalbard — issued scrip currency for use exclusively within its company settlements at Longyearbyen and Svea. These notes functioned as a parallel monetary system in an Arctic archipelago where Norwegian sovereignty was perpetually complicated by the 1920 Svalbard Treaty, which granted all signatory nations equal rights to economic activity there. Soviet-operated Barentsburg ran its own scrip simultaneously, and neither currency was accepted in the other's settlement.
By 1973, the scrip system was already nearing its end. Norwegian kroner replaced company currency in the settlements shortly afterward, making the later-dated issues the shortest-lived in circulation.