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5 000 000 000 Mark
| Issuer | Stadtrat zu Adorf im Vogtland |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Fünf Milliarden Gutschein Gültig nur im Bezirke der Stadt Adorf i. V. während der im amtlichen Bekanntmachungsblatte des Stadtrates bekannt gegebenen Laufzeit. Fünf Milliarden Mark zahlen die städtischen Kassen zu Adorf i. V. gegen Rückgabe dieses Gutscheines innerhalb der bekannt gegebenen Laufzeit. Der Stadtrat zu Adorf i. V. Adorf i. V., den 25. August 1923. Bürgermeister. |
| Reverse description | Blue and tan bipartite reverse printed in two colours on a fine geometric guilloche underprint. The left panel carries a heraldic lion rampant within a shield vignette above an anti-counterfeiting penal warning in Gothic script, with the denomination "Fünf Milliarden" at its head. The right panel bears a brown engraved townscape vignette of a Vogtland street scene with a church tower, overprinted with the bold denomination "Fünf Milliarden Mark" and a serial number below the vignette; the validity clause continues at the top and base of the panel. |
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| Comments |
Adorf im Vogtland was a small textile town in Saxony, and like hundreds of German municipalities in late 1923, its town council issued its own emergency currency when the Reichsbank simply could not print fast enough to keep pace with hyperinflation. By the time five-billion-mark denominations were being locally necessary, the exchange rate against the dollar was measured in the trillions. These notgeld pieces were often redeemable for only days before the figures became meaningless again.
Local printing on locally sourced paper means quality control was inconsistent across the run. Ink strike and registration vary noticeably between surviving copies.