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5 Kroner Kings Bay Coal Company
| Issuer | Kings Bay Kull Comp. A/S |
|---|---|
| Year | 1947-1964 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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| Obverse description | Red and cream letterpress-printed payment note on plain paper with a fine guilloche underprint covering the entire field. The issuer's name KINGS BAY KULL COMP. A/S is set in bold type across the centre, surmounted by the denomination numeral 5 and the written value Fem kroner in large display type, with series letter and serial number in the upper corners. The full Norwegian-language terms and conditions governing the note's use on Spitsbergen are printed in smaller text above two manuscript signature lines identifying the chairman of the board and the office manager. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | 5 KR. |
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| Comments |
Kings Bay Kull Comp. A/S operated the Norwegian coal mining concession at Ny-Ålesund on Svalbard, and these scrip notes functioned as the closed-currency system for workers who had little practical way to spend conventional Norwegian kroner in one of the most remote settlements on earth. The company store was the only game in town — literally — so the scrip circulated in a tight, controlled loop between wages and the canteen.
The series spans nearly two decades because Ny-Ålesund itself limped along despite persistent losses, kept alive largely for strategic and sovereignty reasons in the High Arctic. Operations ended abruptly after the 1962 mine explosion killed 21 men, and the settlement was never re-opened for coal extraction.