Catalog
5 Marks
| Issuer | Polska Krajowa Kasa Pożyczkowa (Polish State Loan Bank) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1919 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 130 × 80 mm |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Uniform green underprint with an intricate arabesque and foliate guilloche filling the entire field. The numeral '5' appears in two circular cartouches at left and right centre. A central shield vignette carries the Polish eagle, surrounded by dense scrollwork. The anti-counterfeiting warning text is set in a plain rectangular panel in the upper centre, while the series designation and serial number are printed in dark ink in the lower left and lower right corners respectively. |
| Reverse lettering | KTO PODRABIA LUB FAŁSZUJE BILETY POLSKIEJ KRAJOWEJ KASY POŻYCZKOWEJ ALBO PUSZCZA W OBIEG LUB USIŁUJE PUŚCIĆ W OBIEG PODROBIONE LUB FAŁSZOWANE BILETY, PODLEGA KARZE CIĘŻKIEGO WIĘZIENIA. |
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| Comments |
The Polska Krajowa Kasa Pożyczkowa was itself a transitional institution — created under German occupation in 1916 to issue a currency distinct from both the Russian ruble and the German mark, it continued operating into early Polish independence simply because there was nothing yet to replace it. These 1919 notes circulated alongside a chaotic mix of occupation scrip and improvised local emissions during the period when Poland was simultaneously fighting border wars on multiple fronts and attempting to build a functioning treasury from scratch.
The marka polska issued through this bank was eventually replaced by the złoty in 1924, at a rate of 1,800,000 marek to one złoty — a ratio that tells you everything about the inflation those years produced.