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50 Pfennig
| Issuer | Stadt Mainz (City of Mainz) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1918 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 68 × 44 mm |
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| Obverse description | Dark blue letterpress on pale green underprint, with the large denomination numeral and text '50 Pfennig' in a bold header band across the top. To the left, the red and white arms of Mainz — a shield bearing two wagon wheels and a cross — set within an oak-leaf vignette border. The central text panel states the city treasury's payment obligation, dated Mainz, 1. November 1918, with the title 'Der Oberbürgermeister' and a manuscript signature below. A vertical red serial number is printed in the right margin. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Printed in brown on plain paper, the reverse carries a central townscape vignette of a Mainz public square, with a monument, tree-lined street, ornate iron fence, and the spire of Mainz Cathedral visible in the background. Vertical side panels at left and right bear the denomination numerals '50' in corner squares, flanked by engraved grapevine and cluster motifs evoking the Rhineland viticulture tradition. A three-line invalidation clause is set in a text band along the lower margin. |
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| Comments |
Mainz issued its own emergency fractional currency in 1918 as the Imperial German economy buckled under wartime coin shortages — small denominations disappeared from circulation as the public hoarded metal, forcing municipalities across Germany to print their own Kleingeldersatz. The Stadt Mainz series is one of hundreds of such Notgeld issues from this period, though Mainz, as a major Rhine garrison city under martial administration for much of the war, had particular logistical pressure to maintain functional retail exchange.
Paper Notgeld at this size was inherently fragile and rarely survived daily use in good condition. Folds and edge wear are the norm, not the exception.