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25 Centimes emergency postage WWI
| Issuer | Trésorerie de la Nouvelle-Calédonie |
|---|---|
| Year | 1920-1923 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Franc (1873-1945) |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 25c. POSTES RF NOUVELLE CALEDONIE ET DEPENDANCES (Translation: 25c. Postage RF (French Republic) New Caledonia and Dependencies) |
| Reverse description | Plain cardboard reverse bearing two circular hand-applied rubber ink stamps validating the piece for emergency monetary circulation: one impressed by the Trésorier Payeur de la Nouvelle-Calédonie and one by the Secrétariat Général. A handwritten serial number appears between the two official cancellation strikes, together constituting the sole authentication of this emergency issue. |
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| Comments |
New Caledonia's postage stamp emergency currency issues were a direct response to the chronic small-change shortage that plagued French colonial territories during and after the First World War. Metal coinage had largely disappeared from circulation — hoarded, melted, or simply never reaching the islands in sufficient quantity — so the Trésorerie mounted stamps on cardboard backing to produce a functional substitute. Vollet, a French engraver and designer with colonial issue credits across multiple territories, provided the original stamp artwork that these pieces repurpose.
The 1920–1923 date range reflects ongoing reissue rather than a single print run, suggesting the shortage persisted well past the armistice.