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5 Mark
| Issuer | Stadtgemeinde Görlitz and Handelskammer für die Preußische Oberlausitz |
|---|---|
| Year | 1918 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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| Obverse description | Printed in violet on a pale lilac underprint of repeating '5 M' and 'GÖRLITZ' guilloche patterns, the note is enclosed within an ornate letterpress border of floral and foliate motifs with numeral '5' cornerpieces. The denomination 'Fünf Mark' is set in bold blackletter script flanking a central circular vignette containing the large numeral '5', surrounded by a beaded ring. Above, the heading 'Dieser Gutschein über' appears in Gothic typeface, with the issue date 'Görlitz, den 18. Oktober 1918' and redemption text distributed in two columns below the denomination. Four facsimile signatures appear at the foot, attributed to Der Magistrat and Die Handelskammer respectively. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Printed in violet on cream paper, the reverse is divided into three vertical panels framed by an ornate guilloche border. The central panel contains a detailed letterpress vignette of the Reichenbacher Turm, Görlitz's medieval tower, set within a pointed arch and surrounded by trees, with the caption 'Reichenbacher Turm' below. The left panel carries a wreath enclosing crossed anchor and sword emblems, while the right panel bears a corresponding wreath with caduceus and scythe, each symbolising commerce and industry; all four corners bear '5 Mark' in solid cartouches. The printer's imprint 'Hoffmann & Reiber, Görlitz' appears at the lower centre margin. |
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| Comments |
This is a joint issue — both the Stadtgemeinde Görlitz and the Handelskammer für die Preußische Oberlausitz appear as co-signatories, an arrangement that reflects the administrative improvisation typical of German municipal emergency currency in the final year of the war. By 1918, the Reichsbank's capacity to supply small-denomination coinage had effectively collapsed under wartime metal demands, pushing local chambers of commerce and city administrations into co-operative issuing arrangements they had no legal framework designed to handle.
Carl Schleicher & Schüll in Düren were among the more reliable commercial paper manufacturers supplying Notgeld printers during this period. The Düren facility had long specialized in technical and security papers before the Notgeld boom gave them an unusual volume of municipal work.