Catalog
Billet de nécessité 5 Francs Carcassonne
| Issuer | Bureau d'Aide Sociale de Carcassonne |
|---|---|
| Year | |
| Type | Local banknote |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | VILLE DE CARCASSONNE Aide aux familles nécessiteuses du fait des évènements Bon No BON pour un achat de CINQ Frs. de denrées alimentaires Le présent BON sera remboursé sur présentation par le Bureau d'AIDE SOCIALE : 15 bis, rue du Pont-Vieux. |
| Reverse description | The reverse is printed on the same plain red paper as the obverse and is otherwise blank save for a circular validation stamp applied in dark ink at the lower left, bearing the legend BUREAU D'AIDE SOCIALE - CARCASSONNE around its circumference with an unprinted central roundel. |
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| Comments |
Necessity notes from French municipal welfare bureaus occupy an odd corner of notaphily — issued by institutions whose primary function was poor relief, not monetary policy, yet pressed into quasi-monetary service during periods when small change effectively vanished from circulation. The Bureau d'Aide Sociale de Carcassonne produced this 5 Francs billet to fill exactly that gap, almost certainly during the coin shortages of the First or Second World War, when centimes and small franc coins were hoarded, melted, or simply absent from daily trade.
Local merchants were typically obligated — informally or by municipal pressure — to accept these notes, though legal tender status was never formally granted. Redemption records for Carcassonne's welfare bureau issues are poorly documented.