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5 Rupien
| Issuer | Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1915 |
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| In circulation to | 1916 |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The bank monogram 'DOB' (Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank) appears in the upper right and lower left corners, rendered in an ornate interlaced style. The note bears the series letter F at left and right margins, with the serial number repeated at lower right. Three lines of bilingual text in German and Swahili occupy the central field, accompanied by an anti-counterfeiting warning in German at the foot of the note. A small printer's imprint cartouche is present at the lower centre. |
| Reverse lettering | Der Gegenwert dieser Banknote ist bei dem Kaiserlichen Gouvernement von Deutsch-Ostafrika voll hinterlegt. Kadei ya noti hii imewkwa sahihi katika Kaiserliches Gouvernement von Deutsch-Ostafrika. Wer Banknoten nachmacht oder verfälscht oder nachgemachte oder verfälschte sich verschafft und in Verkehr bringt, wird mit Zuchthaus nicht unter 2 Jahren bestraft. |
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| Comments |
By 1915, the naval blockade had severed German East Africa from its usual supply lines entirely. The Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank could no longer receive printed currency from Germany, forcing improvised local production — hence this note, printed by Buchdruckerei Tarimu in Tabora, a small inland press wholly unequipped for currency work. The result is crude by any professional standard, and the series is accordingly easy to spot as a wartime expedient rather than a planned issue.
Tabora served as the administrative and military hub for the colony's interior, and it was here that Colonel Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck's guerrilla campaign kept Allied forces occupied until November 1918 — long after the armistice in Europe. These notes were circulating alongside that campaign.