20 Kronen Second Issue

When Austria found itself a rump state after the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in November 1918, it inherited a currency shared with what was now a collection of successor states — Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, and others — all scrambling to separate their monetary supplies. Austria's solution was an overprint: existing Austro-Hungarian 20 Kronen notes were stamped to identify them as Austrian state property, theoretically excluding the note from being repatriated and spent by neighboring governments doing exactly the same thing.

The overprinting campaign was chaotic. Stampings vary noticeably in impression quality and placement, and the "second issue" designation reflects a revised stamp applied after early overprints proved too easily counterfeited or imitated by other successor states. The underlying note remained Austro-Hungarian Bank issue throughout — Austria had no press infrastructure ready for original production at that moment.

Rampant inflation hit the new Austrian Krone hard within two years of this issue.