50 Centimes - Chambre de Commerce de Sens 89

The Chambres de Commerce emergency notes issued across France from 1914 onward filled a vacuum created almost overnight when the public hoarded coins at the outbreak of war. Sens, a small prefecture in the Yonne department, was among dozens of provincial chambers authorized to issue their own fractional paper — technically obligations, not banknotes, and redeemable locally rather than nationally.

Imprimerie Nouvelle François E. in Troyes handled much of this regional emergency printing work for the surrounding departments, producing notes that vary considerably in paper quality across different batches of the same series. The JP#118-02/03 reference covers two slightly different printings distinguishable by minor typographic variation rather than any design change.