Catalog
½ Rigsdaler
| Issuer | Kongelige Grønlandske Handel |
|---|---|
| Year | 1804 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | ½ Rigsdaler |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is unprinted and shows the plain paper surface with a faint watermark impression of the triangular vignette and border design visible in relief through the sheet, along with a partial crown device in the upper right area. |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Watermark consisting of the triangular vignette and border design impressed into the paper, visible on the reverse. |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
The Kongelige Grønlandske Handel — the Royal Greenlandic Trade monopoly — issued its own paper currency for use within Greenland because conventional Danish coinage was essentially useless in a colony operating almost entirely on a barter and company-store model. These notes functioned as internal trade tokens, redeemable only through KGH's own trading posts, keeping commerce firmly inside the monopoly's grasp.
The 1804 series was printed in Copenhagen and shipped north, which meant notes sometimes arrived damaged or in reduced quantities — supply logistics to Greenland at the time were notoriously unreliable, tied entirely to the annual sailing season.