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50 Centimes - Chambre de commerce des Basses Alpes 04
| Issuer | Chambre de Commerce des Basses-Alpes |
|---|---|
| Year | 1917 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 50 Centimes (0.50) |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Blue-grey letterpress note with a decorative guilloche border incorporating four corner star rosettes. To the left, a classical allegorical female figure is seated in profile, while to the right a monument or statue on a pedestal is rendered in vignette. The denomination "Cinquante Centimes" is printed in large script across the centre, flanked by numeral "50" panels, with the issuer's name "CHAMBRE DE COMMERCE DES BASSES-ALPES" in capital letters along the top. Two facsimile signature lines appear in the centre field above the serial number. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Watermark incorporated into the paper substrate; specific motif not confirmed from catalog sources. |
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| Comments |
French chambers of commerce were authorized to issue emergency small-denomination notes from 1914 onward, filling the acute shortage of coins that developed almost immediately after mobilization — silver and bronze disappeared from circulation almost overnight as the public hoarded metal. The Basses-Alpes chamber, covering one of France's more sparsely populated departments, turned to Moullot & fils aîné in Marseille, a well-established lithographic house that handled a number of regional emergency issues during the same period.
Francis André's design credit is relatively uncommon for notes of this type, most of which were produced anonymously. The watermark security measure was present but minimal deterrent against local forgery.