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5 000 000 Mark overprint on 20 Mark
| Issuer | Der Rat der Stadt Leipzig (City Council of Leipzig) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 5 000 000 Mark (5 000 000) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | The face of the underlying 20 Mark Gutschein, dated Leipzig, den 17. Oktober 1918, bears a hyperinflationary revaluation overprint in dark red Fraktur script reading 'Aufgewertet auf 5.000.000 Mark,' applied over the original letterpress text. Central Gothic typography carries the issuing authority legend 'zahlen die Kassen der Stadt Leipzig' and 'Der Rat der Stadt Leipzig,' while four ornamental dark green rosette medallions bearing the numeral '20' occupy the corners; a serial number in blue runs vertically along the right margin. A facsimile signature appears at the lower centre. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Dieser Schein verliert seine Gültigkeit einen Monat nachdem im amtlichen Teile der Sächsischen Staatszeitung und der Leipziger Zeitung die Außerkehrsetzung vom Ministerium des Innern verfügt worden ist. Aufgewertet auf 5,000,000 Mark Fünf Millionen Mark Leipzig, den 10. August 1923 Der Rat der Stadt Leipzig Wer diesen Gutschein nachmacht oder verfälscht oder nachgemachte oder verfälschte Gutscheine sich verschafft und in Verkehr bringt, wird mit Zuchthaus nicht unter 2 Jahren bestraft. |
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| Comments |
Leipzig's city council, like dozens of German municipal authorities in the autumn of 1923, resorted to overprinting existing low-denomination stock rather than waiting for fresh Notgeld to be designed and delivered. The 5,000,000 Mark figure, staggering by any prewar measure, was itself obsolete within weeks — the hyperinflation of late 1923 moved so fast that overprinted municipals often required a second overprint before the ink on the first had time to fade from public memory.
The underlying 20 Mark note is retained as substrate purely out of necessity. Paper shortages were as acute as the monetary collapse itself.