Abensberg's 1917 zinc notgeld issue belongs to the first wave of German municipal emergency coinage, authorized after the imperial government requisitioned copper and nickel for war production, leaving municipalities scrambling to fill the small-denomination void. Zinc was the compromise — cheap, available, and deeply unpopular with the public, who found it corroded quickly in pocket wear. Most pieces from this Bavarian town saw hard, brief circulation before being discarded rather than saved.
Abensberg's 1917 zinc notgeld issue belongs to the first wave of German municipal emergency coinage, authorized after the imperial government requisitioned copper and nickel for war production, leaving municipalities scrambling to fill the small-denomination void. Zinc was the compromise — cheap, available, and deeply unpopular with the public, who found it corroded quickly in pocket wear. Most pieces from this Bavarian town saw hard, brief circulation before being discarded rather than saved.