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2 francs - Chambre de Commerce de Bordeaux [33]
| Issuer | Chambre de Commerce de Bordeaux |
|---|---|
| Year | 1914 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 2 Francs |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Printed entirely in green on cream paper, the obverse is dominated by a central rectangular vignette bearing the bold letterpress legend DEUX FRANCS within a decorative cartouche surmounted by a laurel spray, flanked by dense floral and foliate guilloche underprint filling the field. Series designation '2e Série A' appears in the upper left panel and the serial number in the upper right. Two manuscript signatures appear at lower left and lower right, attributed respectively to the Treasurer and the President of the Chambre de Commerce, with a full text notice along the lower border regarding the reimbursable nature of the issue. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Printed in green on cream paper, the reverse is organized around a central octagonal vignette containing the arms of the Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce — an oval cartouche with a view of the port exchange building — inscribed QUO NON HAC DUCE and XXIV VIRI BURDIGALENSIS COMMERCIS REGENDI, set within an elaborate allegorical composition. A classical female figure is seated at centre below the vignette, flanked by panoramic views of the port of Bordeaux at left with sailing vessels and barrels, and a city prospect at right, all enclosed by a finely engraved border with seahorse and caduceus ornaments at each corner. Large numeral '2' denominators appear boldly to either side of the central vignette. |
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| Comments |
The Chambres de Commerce emergency notes of 1914 exist because the French Treasury was wholly unprepared for the coin hoarding that swept the country within days of general mobilization. Small change vanished almost overnight, and regional chambers were authorized in August 1914 to print their own low-denomination bons — a stop-gap that, in Bordeaux's case, extended well into the war years across multiple series and control variants.
The JP#30.3 and 30.9–10 references indicate distinct emission batches, likely differentiated by control number ranges or minor typographic revisions rather than any substantive redesign. Bordeaux being a major Atlantic port city meant its commerce chamber had both the administrative capacity and the economic urgency to produce several such variants in rapid succession.