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20 Pfennig - Berlin K.d.W.
| Issuer | Kaufhaus des Westens (KdW), Berlin |
|---|---|
| Year | |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Milled |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
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| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Plain zinc field with the numeral '20' boldly struck in large raised relief, occupying the majority of the central field. The numeral is rendered in a simple, utilitarian sans-serif style consistent with the emergency coinage aesthetic of the Weimar-era notgeld issues. No additional legend or device is present. A solid raised rim borders the coin. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Plain |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Kaufhaus des Westens issued zinc token coinage during World War I when the German imperial government's requisitioning of copper and nickel for war materiel left municipalities, businesses, and large commercial concerns scrambling to produce substitute small change. KdW's tokens circulated as in-store currency, accepted only within the department store's own transactions — a private monetary stopgap that was entirely legal under wartime Notgeld provisions.
Zinc was the material of last resort, prone to corrosion and surface granularity that makes fully intact examples harder to find than their original mintage might suggest.