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50 Pfennig
| Issuer | Stadt Bernburg (City of Bernburg) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1921 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in dark brown on cream-yellow paper with a geometric crosshatch underprint. A central architectural arch vignette frames a circular cartouche bearing the denomination numeral '50' and 'PFG.' in green overprint, surmounted by the town arms of Bernburg. Below the arch, a text panel carries the redemption clause and a facsimile magistrate signature, while the lower border bears the spelled-out denomination 'FÜNFZIG PFENNIG' within ornamental scrollwork. A red serial number is printed at the foot of the note, with the printer's imprint 'SCHWARZENBERGER BERNBURG' below the outer frame. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is printed in dark brown on the same cream-yellow stock, with a diamond-pattern geometric underprint covering the field. A large circular vignette at centre presents a woodcut-style view of a monumental civic or castle building with twin towers and a broad multi-arched facade set against a clouded sky. Above the vignette, a four-line aphoristic inscription runs across the full width in bold block lettering. At the lower margin, the denomination '50' appears in green overprint flanked on either side by 'PFG.' in black. |
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| Comments |
Bernburg's 1921 50 Pfennig Notgeld was a product of the chronic small-change shortage that plagued Weimar Germany in the early inflation years, before hyperinflation made the problem irrelevant by destroying purchasing power entirely. Municipalities across Germany were authorized to issue their own emergency coinage — paper and coin alike — to keep retail commerce moving when the Reichsbank could not supply adequate fractional currency.
Schwarzenberger was a local Bernburg printer, not a specialist banknote firm. That matters: small municipal contracts like this went to whoever was available and willing, which is why paper quality and printing registration on provincial Notgeld issues varies so dramatically within the same series.