Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
20 Pfennig
| Issuer | Magistrat der Stadt Cottbus |
|---|---|
| Year | 1918 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 70 × 40 mm |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 20 Pfennig N°438456 Der Magistrat der Stadt Cottbus |
| Reverse description | Plain blue note with the denomination value printed at centre against an unadorned ground, framed by wide white margins on all sides. A redemption notice in centred letterpress text occupies the lower portion of the note, setting out the conditions and deadline for redemption. |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
Cottbus issued its own emergency small-change notes in 1918 as the German imperial coinage system collapsed under wartime metal shortages. These municipal Kleingeldscheine were a local administrative fix — the Magistrat stepping in because the Reichsbank simply couldn't supply enough fractional coin to keep daily commerce moving. Cottbus was not unusual in doing this; hundreds of German municipalities did the same, which is precisely what makes individual town issues easy to overlook.
The 20 Pfennig denomination was among the most practically necessary, covering tram fares and small retail transactions. Locally printed issues from 1918 often show uneven ink distribution — a function of modest municipal print shops working beyond their usual output.