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100 Mark overstamp on 5 Mark
| Issuer | City of Gera (Thuringia) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1922 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Revaluation overprint issue based on the blue-on-blue underprint 5-Mark Gutschein of Gera, with a heavy black letterpress stamp applied to indicate the redenominated value of 100 Mark in both numeral and text form; the overprint also replaces the original council member's signature with that of the incumbent Oberbürgermeister. A serial number in red is printed at top centre, and an embossed municipal seal appears at lower centre; an oak leaf border runs along the left, bottom, and right margins. |
|---|---|
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| Protection description | The note is printed on watermarked paper, as used on the underlying 5-Mark Gutschein of Gera on which this revaluation overprint is applied. |
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| Comments |
Gera's decision to overprint existing 5 Mark stock at 100 Mark was a direct response to the accelerating inflation of 1922, when municipal authorities across Thuringia were scrambling to produce emergency Notgeld of higher denominations faster than conventional printing allowed. Reusing lower-denomination sheets and stamping a new value over them was quicker and cheaper than commissioning fresh designs — the watermarked paper provided a ready-made substrate with at least nominal security.
The overprint itself is the document. What you are looking at is a municipality improvising monetary infrastructure in real time.