20 Mark

Hof an der Saale issued this note in 1918 as Notgeld — emergency municipal currency produced when wartime metal shortages and hoarding stripped smaller denominations from circulation across Germany. Gebrüder Parcus in Munich was one of the more prolific printers of Bavarian municipal Notgeld during this period, supplying dozens of towns that lacked the means or authorization to arrange their own printing.

The 20 Mark denomination places this at the higher end of first-wave Notgeld issues, which more commonly ran to small change values. By late 1918, with military collapse imminent, many of these municipal obligations were never formally redeemed.