Catalog
1000 Marks
| Issuer | Polska Krajowa Kasa Pożyczkowa (Polish State Loan Bank) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1916 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in dark red and grey tones, with an elaborate guilloche border running along all four edges and repeated denomination numerals '1000' at the margins. To the left, a large circular vignette contains the Polish White Eagle with spread wings on a red shield beneath an ornate royal crown. The central text panel, set against a fine guilloche underprint, carries the issuing authority's declaration in Polish, the date 'Warszawa, dn. 9-go grudnia 1916 roku,' three manuscript signatures, and a small inset oval vignette with the crowned eagle and denomination; to the right, a bold red oval cartouche displays the numeral '1000' in intaglio relief. |
|---|---|
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| Protection description | Watermark portraits visible within the two large octagonal vignette areas on the reverse, appearing as male busts in antique style. |
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| Comments |
The Polska Krajowa Kasa Pożyczkowa was established in 1916 under German occupation authority as a parallel monetary institution for the General Government of Warsaw — a deliberate administrative move to detach the occupied Polish territories from the Russian ruble zone. These marks were not a Polish national currency in any sovereign sense; they were an occupying power's tool, denominated in a unit aligned with German fiscal interests.
The 1000 Mark denomination was the highest in the PKKP series, which made it primarily an instrument of large commercial settlement rather than everyday exchange. Surviving examples in genuinely circulated condition are less common than the lower denominations, which passed through far more hands.