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| Issuer | Magistrat der Sechsstadt Lauban i. Schles. |
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| Year | 1920 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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| Obverse description | Green-toned note printed in letterpress with the denomination title 'Fünfzig Pfennig' in large Gothic blackletter script across the top, separated from the body text by an ochre-yellow horizontal band. To the left, the large initial 'F' is rendered as an ornamental Fraktur capital entwined with a naturalistic tree vignette. At centre-left, an oval cartouche contains the town coat of arms of Lauban, showing a crowned eagle above a divided shield. The issuing authority, date of issue, and a facsimile signature of the Magistrat appear to the right, with a hand-stamped serial number in the lower right. |
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| Obverse lettering | Fünfzig Pfennig Dieses Notgeld verliert seine Gültigkeit 1 Monat nach erfolgter Bekanntmachung in den Laubaner Zeitungen. Sechsstadt Lauban i. Schles. im Oktober 1920. Der Magistrat |
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| Comments |
Lauban — now Lubań in southwestern Poland — was a Silesian town with a medieval tradition as one of the "Six Cities" of the Upper Lusatian League, a confederation that had effectively dissolved centuries before this note was issued. The magistrate's decision to invoke that historical identity in the issuer name was a deliberate act of civic branding during a period of acute small-change shortage across Germany.
Gerth & Oppenrieder in Gera produced a substantial volume of Notgeld for municipal clients throughout 1919–1921, printing for dozens of issuers simultaneously. Nothing unusual in the commission — but Lauban would be partitioned under Weimar-era boundary adjustments, adding an irony to any civic pride embedded in the design.