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50 Centimes - Chambre de Commerce du Puy 43
| Issuer | Chambre de Commerce du Puy (Haute-Loire) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1916 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | CHAMBRE DE COMMERCE DU PUY (Hte LOIRE) 50 cent. Le Président Le Sécrétaire Série D Imp. A. Waton St Etienne |
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| Protection type | Watermark |
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| Comments |
French chambers of commerce were authorized to issue emergency small-denomination notes from 1914 onward as the war drained metallic coinage from circulation almost immediately — silver and copper hoarded by the public, requisitioned by the state, or simply worn away by wartime demand. The Chambre de Commerce du Puy issued this 50 centimes piece under that same general authorization, printed locally at Waton's press in Saint-Étienne rather than through a Paris house, which was typical for smaller departmental chambers working with constrained wartime logistics.
Haute-Loire was not an industrial center, and the Puy-en-Velay chamber's circulation was correspondingly limited in geographic scope. JP#70-08 is one of several denominations in the series; the watermark was the primary security measure, modest by any standard but adequate for notes rarely moving beyond local trade.