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50 Centimes - Chambre de commerce d'Angoulème [16]
| Issuer | Chambre de Commerce d'Angoulême |
|---|---|
| Year | 1915 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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| Obverse description | Orange and dark brown letterpress note with a fine geometric guilloche underprint covering the central field. The city arms of Angoulême — a fortified tower flanked by foliage — appear as a vignette at the top centre, accompanied by the motto scrolls reading FORTITUDO MEA and CIVIUM FIDES. Caduceus vignettes occupy the left and right borders, with denomination roundels (0,50) at each lower corner and 2me Série cartouches at each upper corner. The emission date ÉMISSION DU 15 JANVIER 1915 is printed at the foot of the central panel above the serial number, with the printer's imprint along the bottom margin. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Printed in blue-green on plain paper, the reverse is dominated by a large central oval cartouche enclosing the redemption text in a flowing script typeface. The denomination roundels (0,50) are set into the four corners of the ornate border frame, with oak-leaf and geometric guilloche decoration running along the inner border. The 2me Série designation appears in small cartouches at the lower corners. |
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| Comments |
The chambers of commerce emergency notes issued across France from 1914 onward filled a vacuum created almost overnight when metal coinage vanished from circulation — hoarded by the public within weeks of mobilization. Angoulême's chamber was among the earlier provincial issuers to act, and this 50 centimes piece from 1915 reflects the genuine urgency of that moment rather than any administrative formality.
Keller frères was a local Angoulême printer, not a security printing house, which makes the inclusion of a watermark notable — provincial issuers varied considerably in how seriously they treated counterfeiting risk at this denomination.