Catalog
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| Issuer | Store Norske Spitsbergen Kulkompani Aktieselskap (The Great Norwegian Spitsbergen Coal Company) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1938-1942 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 50 Kroner (50 NOK) |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is printed on bright green paper enclosed within a black decorative chain-link border. The issuer's name, Store Norske Spitsbergen Kulkompani Aktieselskap, is set in bold blackletter type at the centre, above the denomination 50 = Femti kroner in large display lettering. The note carries a manuscript signature below the redemption text, with the printed titles Styrets formann and Kontorchef, Spitsbergen at the foot; series and number boxes appear in the upper corners. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is plain, carrying only the partial impression of a large-text watermark from the paper stock. No printed design elements are present. |
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| Comments |
Store Norske Spitsbergen Kulkompani was a private coal mining company operating in Longyearbyen under a Norwegian state concession, and its scrip notes functioned as the de facto currency of an Arctic settlement with no bank, no postal money order service, and no practical means of spending Norwegian krone. Workers were paid partly in this company currency, redeemable only at the company store — a closed economic loop that was entirely deliberate.
Emil Moestue in Oslo printed the series, which remained in use through the German occupation of Svalbard. The Kriegsmarine evacuated Longyearbyen in 1941, effectively ending circulation.