Catalog
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| Issuer | Stadt Ludwigshafen am Rhein |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | FÜNFHUNDERT MILLIONEN MARK GUTSCHEIN DER STADT LUDWIGSHAFEN Ludwigshafen a.Rh. den 28. Sept. 1923 Der Oberbürgermeister Der Zeitpunkt der Einlösung dieses Gutscheins wird öffentlich bekannt gegeben. WEISS & HAMEIER LUDWIGSHAFEN A.RH. |
| Reverse description | The reverse is unprinted, presenting a plain cream-coloured paper surface with no design, text, or security features, typical of low-cost emergency Notgeld issues produced under the hyperinflationary conditions of 1923 Germany. |
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| Comments |
Ludwigshafen's municipal administration issued this 500-million-mark note during the autumn of 1923, when hyperinflation had advanced far enough that denominations once considered unimaginable were simply the week's practical necessity. Weiss & Hameier — a local commercial printer, not a specialist banknote firm — produced the note in the same city where it circulated, an arrangement born purely of urgency. Major printing houses were overwhelmed; municipalities turned to whoever had a press.
By the time notes of this denomination reached the public, the Reichsmark reform was already being prepared. Most Notgeld of this magnitude had a lifespan measured in days before it was rendered worthless by yet another zeros-adding decree.