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50 Centimes - Chambre de Commerce du Havre 76
| Issuer | Chambre de Commerce du Havre |
|---|---|
| Year | |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | JP#68-01/02/03 |
| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in dark brown on a cream ground with a text-based guilloche underprint repeating 'CHAMBRE DE COMMERCE VILLE DU HAVRE' across the entire field. The central area carries the denomination '0,50 CENTIMES' in large red numerals, flanked by two circular vignettes set upon ornate column pedestals — the left inscribed with the authorization notice and the right with the exchangeability clause — the whole enclosed within a decorative guilloche border with rosette corner ornaments. Two facsimile signatures appear below the denomination, attributed respectively to the President of the Chambre de Commerce and the Mayor of the City of Le Havre, with the serial number repeated at lower left and lower right. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | La Ville du Havre et la Chambre de Commerce de la Ville du Havre pourront demander un décret fixant un délai de cinq ans au minimum à dater dudit décret pendant lequel les billets encore en circulation devront être présentés au remboursement. |
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| Comments |
The Le Havre Chamber of Commerce began issuing emergency small-denomination notes during the acute coin shortage that followed the outbreak of the First World War in 1914. French commercial and municipal chambers were authorized to produce this kind of emergency fiduciary currency — *monnaie de nécessité* — when the hoarding of metal coinage brought everyday retail transactions to a near standstill. The Le Havre issues were among the earliest and most widely used in Normandy, circulating heavily through the port's commercial district.
The JP#68 series encompasses three catalogue variants under the same design umbrella, distinguished by minor typographic and stamp differences. The embossed chamber seal was applied as a validation measure against counterfeiting — a practical choice given the improvised production conditions of wartime France.