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25 Francs
| Issuer | Banque de la Martinique |
|---|---|
| Year | 1942 |
| 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 | 130 × 78 mm |
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| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Violet and black letterpress note with a vignette at the left comprising a classical column flanked by tropical foliage and stars, with the denomination numeral '25' below in large print. The bank title runs across the top in bold uppercase lettering, while the value legend 'VINGT-CINQ FRANCS' is set in large type to the right of the vignette. Serial number, series prefix, and two manuscript signature lines for the Director and the Cashier occupy the central field, with the large guilloche underprint numeral '25' spanning the right half of the note. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Printed in brown on a pale ground, the reverse carries a bold geometric Art Deco border composed of repeating zigzag and hatched triangular motifs, with the numeral '25' in each corner. At center, a large interlocking 'BMB' monogram — the cipher of the Banque de la Martinique — is rendered in a stylized decorative typeface within a rectangular panel. The anti-counterfeiting penal code warning appears in small uppercase text beneath the monogram. |
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| Comments |
Martinique in 1942 was under the authority of the Vichy-aligned Admiral Robert, who administered the French Antilles in a state of effective blockade after the British and Americans cut off the island's maritime trade. The Banque de la Martinique, unable to import printed currency from metropolitan France, turned to a local printer — Bezaudin in Fort-de-France — producing a series of emergency issues with noticeably cruder engraving than prewar notes.
Local printing under wartime resource constraints left these notes prone to uneven ink distribution. The paper quality varies considerably across surviving examples, a direct consequence of supply shortages during the blockade years.