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20 Francs / 4 Ariary
| Issuer | Government of Madagascar and Dependencies |
|---|---|
| Year | 1917 |
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| Value | 20 Francs |
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| Obverse description | The obverse bears the heading COLONIE DE MADAGASCAR ET DEPENDANCES and a central text block in French detailing the issuance authority of twenty francs, guaranteed by the Caisse de Réserve en Rentes sur l'État Français in bonds for Madagascar and French West Africa and in Treasury bonds, pursuant to the Decree of September 17, 1914. The note is dated Tananarive, March 29, 1917, and carries the printed titles of the Director of Finance and the Paymaster in the lower register. A decorative border frames the entire composition, with a vignette at left of a woman carrying a basket on her head, flanked by a prickly pear cactus at right. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | COLONIE DE MADAGASCAR ET DEPENDANCES VINGT FRANCS Émission de DIX MILLIONS de francs garantie par les fonds de la Caisse de Réserve en Rentes sur l'État Français en obligations pour Madagascar et l'Afrique Occidentale Française et en Bons du Trésor. (Décret du 17 Septembre 1914) Tananarive, le 29 Mars 1917 Le Directeur des Finances Le Payeur |
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| Comments |
Madagascar's early French colonial notes occupy a peculiar administrative niche — the island was governed separately from French West Africa and required its own issue authority. This 1917 note predates the establishment of the Banque de Madagascar by over a decade; the issuing body here was the colonial government itself acting in the absence of a proper banking institution, an arrangement that was always intended as temporary but persisted far longer than planned.
The dual denomination — Francs alongside Ariary — reflects a practical concession to the Malagasy monetary tradition. The ariary was an indigenous unit of account long embedded in local commerce, and ignoring it would have complicated trade outside the capital.
WWI shipping disruptions made resupply of printed currency from France unreliable, which partly explains why emergency government-issued notes like this one remained in use well into the postwar period.