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| Issuer | Landkreis Greiz (District of Greiz, Thuringia) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 5 000 000 Marks (5 000 000) |
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| Obverse description | Plain grey-green note of simple typographic layout, with the denomination '5 000 000' printed in the upper left and right corners flanking the heading 'Gutschein über' in letterpress. The value legend 'Fünf Millionen Mark' is set in large Gothic blackletter script across the centre, underlined by a ruled border, with 'des Landkreises Greiz' below in Roman type. A circular underprint vignette bearing the district seal of Greiz appears at centre, accompanied by a redemption guarantee clause, the place and date 'Greiz, am 17. September 1923', two manuscript signatures below the titles 'Der Vorsitzende des Kreisrates' and 'Der Thüringische Kreisdirektor', a serial prefix 'A' and serial number at lower left, and a vertical anti-counterfeiting warning text along the right margin. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 5 000 000 Gutschein über Fünf Millionen Mark des Landkreises Greiz Die Einlösung dieses Betrages ist durch das Vermögen des Kreises sichergestellt. Greiz, am 17. September 1923. Der Vorsitzende des Kreisrates. Der Thüringische Kreisdirektor. No Wer Gutscheine nachmacht oder verfälscht, oder nachgemachte oder verfälschte sich verschafft und in den Verkehr bringt, wird strafrechtlich verfolgt. |
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| Comments |
Landkreis Greiz was one of dozens of Thuringian administrative districts that issued its own emergency currency during the hyperinflation of 1923, when the Reichsmark was collapsing so rapidly that denominations in the millions became routine within weeks. By August of that year, even local district councils had been granted provisional authority to issue notgeld simply to meet payroll and provide change for daily transactions — the Reichsbank could not print or distribute fast enough.
Five million marks sounds extraordinary; by November 1923 it would have bought almost nothing.