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2 000 000 Mark
| Issuer | Stadtgemeinde Düren (City of Düren) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
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| Composition | Paper |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is divided into two panels by a vertical rule. The left panel carries a decorative guilloche border at top and bottom, the denomination «2000000 Mk.» in letterpress, and a woodcut-style heraldic shield of the city of Düren below, with the inscription «Stadt Düren 1923» at the foot. The right panel bears the serial number in red, the large Gothic-script legend «Zwei Millionen Mark», a block of text in German Fraktur type confirming coverage by Reichsschatzanweisungen and acceptance by local banks and savings banks of the Düren district, the issue date «Düren, den 8. August 1923», and the facsimile signature of the Oberbürgermeister. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Dieser Gutschein über Zwei Millionen Mark ist durch Hinterlegung von Reichsschatzanweisungen gedeckt. Er wird von den kommunalen Kassen und Sparkassen, sowie den Banken des Kreises Düren in Zahlung genommen. Der Schein verliert seine Gültigkeit mit Ablauf einer Woche nach Aufruf in den Dürener Zeitungen. Die Stadtgemeinde Düren haftet für die Einlösung. Düren, den 8. August 1923. Der Oberbürgermeister 2000000 Mk. Stadt Düren 1923 |
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| Comments |
Düren issued its own emergency currency — Notgeld — during the hyperinflationary collapse of 1923, when the Reichsmark was depreciating so rapidly that municipalities could not wait for Berlin to print and distribute denominations fast enough to meet daily transactions. A two-million Mark note, astronomical by any peacetime standard, would within weeks of issue have bought little more than a loaf of bread.
The Merkelbach reference (2#7-9) suggests this was one of at least three closely related printings in the same series, likely distinguished by minor typographic or color variations rather than substantive design changes — a common cost-saving approach for municipal issuers working with local printers under time pressure.