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5 000 000 Mark Reichsbahndirektion
| Issuer | Reichsbahn-Direktion Dresden |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Mark (1914-1924) |
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| Obverse description | Orange and brown Notgeld issued by the Reichsbahn-Direktion Dresden, dated 21. August 1923, with the numeral value '5-000-000' in bold Gothic type at the top centre above an elaborate orange guilloche underprint of interlocking rosettes and foliate scrollwork. The denomination in words 'Fünf Millionen Mark' is set in large Fraktur script across the centre, below which the redemption text and issuing authority 'Reichsbahn-Direktion' appear alongside a serial number; a circular official stamp bearing the Reichsadler (imperial eagle) and the legend 'REICHSBAHNDIREKTION DRESDEN' is positioned at centre-bottom, flanked by two manuscript signatures for the Präsident and Hauptkasse. Vertical anti-counterfeiting legal text runs along both lateral margins within a decorative chain border. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 5-000-000 GUTSCHEIN der Reichsbahn-Direktion Dresden. Fünf Millionen Mark zahlen die Kassen der Reichsbahn im Bereiche der unterzeichneten Reichsbahn-Direktion gegen Rückgabe dieses Gutscheines. DRESDEN, den 21. August 1923. Reichsbahn-Direktion Der Präsident: Hauptkasse: REICHSBAHNDIREKTION DRESDEN |
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| Comments |
The Reichsbahn-Direktionen — regional railway directorates — issued emergency currency during the hyperinflation of 1923 under the same necessity that drove municipalities, factories, and utilities across Germany to print their own Notgeld. Dresden's directorate issued this 5,000,000 Mark note as the Reichsmark's purchasing power collapsed so rapidly that the central government could not supply denominations fast enough to meet payroll and operational needs. Railway workers had to be paid, trains had to run, and waiting for Berlin was not an option.
By August–November 1923, denominations that had seemed astronomical weeks earlier became inadequate within days. This note belongs to that final, violent phase of the inflation before the Rentenmark stabilization of November 1923 ended the crisis.