Catalog
2 Karbowanez
| Issuer | Zentralnotenbank Ukraine |
|---|---|
| Year | 1942 |
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| Size | 130 x 67 mm |
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| Reverse description | Printed entirely in blue, the reverse is dominated by a large central numeral 2 set against an intricate guilloche rosette underprint. The issuing authority name ZENTRALNOTENBANK UKRAINE and denomination ZWEI KARBOWANEZ appear at the top, with the Ukrainian equivalent ДВА КАРБОВАНЦІ and ЦЕНТРАЛЬНИЙ ЕМІСІЙНИЙ БАНК УКРАЇНИ along the lower margin. Anti-counterfeiting warnings are printed in German at the left (GELD-FÄLSCHUNG WIRD MIT ZUCHTHAUS BESTRAFT) and in Ukrainian Cyrillic at the right, flanking the central vignette. |
| Reverse lettering | ZENTRALNOTENBANK UKRAINE ZWEI KARBOWANEZ GELD-FÄLSCHUNG WIRD MIT ZUCHTHAUS BESTRAFT ФАЛЬШУВАННЯ ГРОШОВИХ ЗНАКІВ КАРАЄТЬСЯ ТЯК-КОЮ ТЮРМОЮ ДВА КАРБОВАНЦІ ЦЕНТРАЛЬНИЙ ЕМІСІЙНИЙ БАНК УКРАЇНИ |
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| Comments |
The Zentralnotenbank Ukraine was a German occupation institution established in 1942 specifically to manage currency in the Reichskommissariat Ukraine. It had no meaningful independence — monetary policy was dictated entirely from Berlin, and the karbowanez was pegged to the Reichsmark at a rate designed to facilitate extraction of resources rather than support local economic life. The name "karbowanez" was borrowed from the pre-Soviet Ukrainian term for the hryvnia's predecessor, a deliberate nod to Ukrainian national sentiment that cost the occupiers nothing.
Bundesdruckerei produced the entire series under its wartime designation as Reichsdruckerei. The 2 Karbowanez was among the lower denominations; inflation driven by German requisitioning and wartime disruption quickly eroded the purchasing power of small notes like this one.