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50 Pfennig Bankhaus Janßen
| Issuer | Bankhaus Johann Janßen, Westerland |
|---|---|
| Year | 1918 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 70 × 51 mm |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Das Bankhaus Johann Janßen, Westerland wolle zahlen gegen diesen Scheck aus meinem / unserem Guthaben an ... oder Ueberbringer Fünfzig Pfennige Westerland, den 1. April 1918. Nr. B DRUCK SEIMAR BAYER BERLIN S.O. 36 |
| Reverse description | The reverse is dominated by a finely engraved vignette of the Bankhaus Johann Janßen building in Westerland, rendered in detailed letterpress within a circular medallion framed by scroll ornaments at the top. The medallion is set against an intricate dark lace-pattern guilloche background that fills the entire field to the outer border, with decorative volute cartouches at each corner of the circular frame. |
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| Comments |
Bankhaus Johann Janßen was a private banking house operating on the island of Sylt — Westerland being the island's principal town — and this 1918 Notgeld issue reflects the acute small-change shortage that gripped Germany during the final year of the First World War. Municipal authorities, savings banks, and even private commercial firms were permitted to issue emergency fractional currency when the official supply collapsed, which is why a single island bank appears as an issuer on what would otherwise seem an improbable denomination.
Selmar Bayer, Berlin — a minor commercial printer rather than a specialist security firm — handled a significant volume of provincial Notgeld during this period.