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5 000 000 Mark Reichsbahndirektion
| Issuer | Deutsche Reichsbahn, Reichsbahndirektion Karlsruhe |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 143 × 85 mm |
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| Obverse description | Violet-purple Notgeld printed on plain paper with an overall guilloche underprint composed of floral and rosette ornaments filling the entire field. The denomination 'Fünf Millionen Mark' is set in large Gothic blackletter script across the centre, above a two-line redemption clause in smaller Gothic type. The issuing authority 'Deutsche Reichsbahn / Reichsbahndirektion Karlsruhe' appears at the top in Gothic lettering, flanked by the numeral '5.000.000' repeated in each corner; the date 'Karlsruhe den 10. August 1923' and the designation 'Reichsbahndirektion' appear in the lower centre above a manuscript signature, with the word 'Gutschein' inscribed above the denomination. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | REICHSBAHNDIREKTION KARLSRUHE 5000000 GUT FÜR MARKS |
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| Comments |
Deutsche Reichsbahn issued its own emergency currency during the hyperinflation peak of 1923 because the Reichsbank simply could not print fast enough to meet payroll. The railways were among Germany's largest employers, and regional directorates — Karlsruhe included — were authorized to produce notgeld denominated in marks at figures that had been unimaginable just months earlier. Five million marks, enough to buy a loaf of bread for perhaps a day, depending on when in that autumn you were spending it.
Railway-issued notgeld from this period was typically redeemed quickly and destroyed, which keeps surviving examples genuinely uncommon despite the enormous quantities originally printed.