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20 Pfennig
| Issuer | Stadt Kempen am Rhein (City of Kempen) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1920 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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| Obverse description | Printed on smooth, firm yellow paper in dark brown ink, the obverse is divided into two horizontal registers within a ruled border. The upper register carries the issuer heading in bold Fraktur script above the denomination stated in large numerals flanking the central text. The lower register contains a lighter-toned panel with the legal tender clause in small letterpress type, dated 9 March 1920, with the Bürgermeister's facsimile signature, and a serial number in Gothic numerals at the foot, flanked by small floral vignettes at each corner. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Stadt Kempen-Rhein Gutschein über 20 Pfennig 20 DIESER GUTSCHEIN WIRD VON ALLEN STÄDT. KASSEN IN ZAHLUNG GENOMMEN. ER VERLIERT SEINE GÜLTIGKEIT EINEN MONAT NACH AUFKÜNDIGUNG IN DEN KEMP. ORTSBLÄTTERN. DIE STADTGEMEINDE KEMPEN HAFTET FÜR DIE EINLÖSUNG. KEMPEN RHEIN: 9.3.20 DER BÜRGERMEISTER |
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| Comments |
Kempen am Rhein — now simply Kempen, in the Lower Rhine region of North Rhine-Westphalia — issued this note as part of the vast German Kleingeldersatz phenomenon of the early Weimar period, when chronic coin shortages forced hundreds of municipalities to print their own fractional paper currency. By 1920 the federal government had largely lost control of small-denomination circulation, and cities like Kempen stepped in by necessity rather than ambition.
The watermark is worth noting — most municipal Notgeld at this denomination and date dispensed with security features entirely, making watermarked examples a relative anomaly at the Pfennig level.