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3 000 000 Mark Reichsbahndirektion
| Issuer | Reichsbahndirektion Köln (Deutsche Reichsbahn) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in dark brown on a pink guilloche underprint, enclosed within a decorative border of repeating star and geometric motifs. The numeral denomination '3000000' appears in stylised block lettering across the upper left, flanked to the right by a winged wheel vignette — the emblem of the Deutsche Reichsbahn — while the value in Gothic script 'Drei Millionen Mark' dominates the centre in large blackletter type. Below the denomination, a three-paragraph text block states the conditions of acceptance at railway and public cashiers, dated 'Köln, den 11. August 1923', with the issuing authority 'Reichsbahndirektion Köln' and two manuscript signatures; a red circular stamp bearing the Deutsche Reichsbahn eagle and the number '15' is applied to the lower left. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse is printed in dark brown on a pink guilloche underprint within a star-motif border matching the obverse, with the denomination '3 000 000 Mark' lettered in a plain typeface along all four margins. The central field carries the Gothic blackletter text 'Drei Millionen Mark' arranged in an arc above and below a centrally placed winged wheel device, identical in style to the obverse emblem, set against a finely cross-hatched background pattern. Corner ornaments of dotted scroll designs fill the inner frame, lending a symmetrical, typographically austere composition characteristic of German Notgeld emergency currency of the hyperinflation period. |
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| Comments |
The Reichsbahndirektionen — regional railway directorates — were among dozens of non-banking entities authorized to issue emergency currency during the hyperinflation of 1923, when the Reichsbank simply could not print fast enough to meet demand. The Cologne directorate issued notes denominated in the millions as a matter of operational necessity: workers needed to be paid, and the wages required to buy a loaf of bread were climbing daily.
Three million marks sounds staggering; by late 1923 it would barely cover a tram fare.