5 Rupien

By 1915, the naval blockade had severed German East Africa from Europe entirely, forcing the Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank to commission emergency currency from the only press available in Dar es Salaam — the colonial newspaper Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Zeitung. The result is a note that reads like a document produced under siege, because it was.

The entire Notgeld series was authorized by Governor Heinrich Schnee as the territory's silver reserves became impossible to replenish. Printed on whatever paper the newspaper had on hand, individual notes were signed by bank officials to authenticate them — a practice that makes unsigned examples suspect. The blockade-era paper stock varied considerably, and some issues show pronounced foxing inherent to the material rather than storage damage.