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20 Pfennig
| Issuer | Stadtkasse Lübeck (City Treasury of Lübeck) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1921 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| In circulation to | 31 December 1921 |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse carries a bold expressionist-style vignette in black ink on cream paper, depicting the so-called 'Lübsche Adler' (Lübeck Eagle) rendered as a grotesque double-headed bird biting its own tail in a circular composition, evoking a local heraldic motif treated with satirical humour. A red horizontal bar separates the vignette from the caption text below. The artist's signature 'A. Mahlau' appears within the vignette, and the printer's imprint is at the foot. |
| Reverse lettering | III. DER LÜBSCHE ADLER ERKENNT SEIN DOPPELGESICHT GEBRUDER BORCHERS G.M.B.H., LÜBECK, |
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| Comments |
Alfred Mahlau was a central figure in Lübeck's graphic arts scene, later closely associated with the Werkkunstschule there — his involvement in even a minor municipal emergency note speaks to how seriously some German cities approached notgeld design during the postwar coin shortage. Gebrüder Borchers was a local Lübeck printer, so this note was conceived, designed, and produced entirely within the city.
At 44 × 36 mm, it is among the smallest notgeld pieces issued anywhere in the 1921 wave — closer to a postage stamp than a banknote.