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5 Pfennig - Kelbra a. Kyffhäuser
| Issuer | Stadt Kelbra am Kyffhäuser |
|---|---|
| Year | 1917 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 1.6 g |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | Octagonal reverse displaying the large numeral '5' at center, framed by a twisted rope or cable inner border, itself surrounded by a beaded outer circle following the octagonal periphery. The legend KLEINGELDERSATZMARKE (small change substitute token) arcs around the upper portion of the field, while three six-pointed stars are evenly spaced at the lower margin, serving as decorative separators. The overall design reflects the standardized, functional aesthetic of German Kriegsgeld (war emergency coinage) of 1917. |
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| Additional information |
Kelbra issued this zinc notgeld piece in 1917 as German municipal authorities scrambled to plug the coin shortage created by wartime metal requisitioning — copper and nickel had been pulled from circulation to feed the war industry, leaving small-denomination transactions effectively paralyzed in towns too small to absorb the disruption through barter or paper. Zinc, largely useless for armaments, became the default substitute.
Kelbra am Kyffhäuser was a minor administrative center with no mint tradition whatsoever; pieces like this were typically contracted to regional printing or metalworking firms, which accounts for the variation in strike quality seen across the Funck-catalogued series.