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20 Rigsdaler / 20 Kroner - Christian V Thormøhlen notes
| Issuer | Norway |
|---|---|
| Year | 1695 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | The obverse carries a central promissory text in period Danish script, with the royal cypher monogram CVC positioned to the upper right of the text block. Four red wax seals are applied: one in the upper left bearing the seal of Christian V, and three along the lower edge corresponding to Jørgen Thormøler, Jacob Sørensen (interest writer), and Lauritz Mauritzen Trap (interest writer). Manuscript signatures appear below and to the right of the printed text. |
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| Obverse lettering | CVC Som Hans Kongl. Majeſt. den 22 Junii indebærende Aar 1695/ sin ailernaadigſte Forordning haver ladet udgaae / angaaende diſſe Seddeler / ſom i ſteden for bare Penge Norden = sields udi Hans Kongelige Majeſtats Rige Norge ſkal gielde/ Saa er denne Seddel efter ſamme Forordnings ind = hold vorden authoriſeret, for Værdie af thlufue === Rixdaler/Croner. Kiøbenhafn den 10 July === 1695 |
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These notes are among the earliest paper money ever issued in Scandinavia, predating the establishment of any formal Norwegian central bank by well over a century. They were produced under the authority of the Bergen merchant and financier Jørgen Thormøhlen, who had obtained a royal privilege from Christian V to issue banknotes — an extraordinarily unusual arrangement that effectively delegated monetary emission to a private individual rather than a crown institution.
Thormøhlen's financial empire collapsed in 1700, and the notes became worthless. Surviving examples are extraordinarily rare, and those retaining their original wax seal intact are rarer still.