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1000 Francs
| Issuer | Société Générale de Belgique |
|---|---|
| Year | 1915-1918 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1000 Francs (1000 BEF) |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Printer | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Oval intaglio vignette at left with a portrait of Peter Paul Rubens in period dress, set within an elaborate floral and foliate border. The central field carries the large denomination numeral '1000' above the legend 'MILLE FRANCS' in ornate letterpress, flanked by guilloche panels. A text block in the lower centre panel contains the redemption clause, with two manuscript signatures and the imprint 'Impr. B.N. de B.' at the foot. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is composed almost entirely of intricate guilloche latticework and geometric lathe-work patterns forming a dense, symmetrical underprint across the entire field. The issuer's name 'SOCIÉTÉ GÉNÉRALE DE BELGIQUE' is set within an ornate cartouche at the top centre, above the denomination rendered as '1000' in large open numerals flanked by 'DUIZEND' and 'FRANK' in bold capitals. Two circular medallions with the institution's monogram anchor the left and right margins, and two manuscript signatures appear below a Dutch-language redemption text. |
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| Comments |
The Société Générale de Belgique was not a central bank but a powerful private holding company — yet under German occupation it became the primary vehicle through which Belgium's financial life was maintained after the National Bank's operations were severely curtailed. These large-denomination notes were issued with German authorization and circulated alongside occupation currency, a compromise the Belgian establishment accepted to prevent total monetary collapse.
The fact that the National Bank's own printing works produced them is telling — institutional infrastructure continued functioning even as sovereignty did not.