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50 Deutsche Mark
| Issuer | Deutsche Notenbank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1948 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 171 × 86 mm |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in dark green and olive tones on a pale ground, composed entirely of typographic and ornamental elements without a figurative vignette. The word "BANKNOTE" appears in a decorative cartouche at the top centre, flanked by the numeral 50 repeated along both lateral borders within guilloche panels. At centre, the denomination "FÜNFZIG DEUTSCHE MARK" is set in bold gothic letterpress, with the issuing authority text and date "BERLIN 1948" below; a large numeral "50" in an elaborate guilloche rosette occupies the right field. A separate detachable coupon to the left carries a further guilloche medallion with the numeral 50. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is dominated by an elaborate all-over guilloche composition in dark green against a warm ochre-orange underprint, with the word "BANKNOTE" in a cartouche at the top and the numeral 50 in guilloche cornerpieces at each corner. The denomination "FÜNFZIG DEUTSCHE MARK" is inscribed in large gothic lettering within a central scalloped medallion of fine lathe-work. A detachable coupon to the right carries a further guilloche rosette with the numeral 50 printed in red-brown, and the anti-counterfeiting warning legend appears in small letterpress text along the lower margin of the main note. |
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| Comments |
The Deutsche Notenbank was the central bank of the Soviet occupation zone, and this 1948 issue predates the formal establishment of East Germany by a year. The note was produced by Giesecke & Devrient at their Leipzig plant — the firm's eastern operation, which would eventually be nationalized and reorganized under the GDR. The western parent company in Munich continued independently, a rare case of a single printing house split by the Iron Curtain and operating on opposite sides of it simultaneously.
Pick #14 is scarce in circulated grades above Fine; the 50 Mark denomination saw heavy use in a zone where consumer goods were chronically short and black market valuations made large-denomination notes move fast.