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50 Deutsche Mark
| Issuer | Deutsche Notenbank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1948 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | BANKNOTE FÜNFZIG DEUTSCHE MARK VON DER DEUTSCHEN NOTENBANK AUF GRUND IHRER SATZUNG AUSGEGEBEN BERLIN 1948 (Translation: BANKNOTE FIFTY DEUTSCHE MARK ISSUED BY THE GERMAN NOTE BANK ON THE BASIS OF ITS STATUTES BERLIN 1948) |
| Reverse description | The reverse is dominated by an elaborate all-over guilloche composition in dark green against a warm ochre-orange underprint, with the word "BANKNOTE" in a cartouche at the top and the numeral 50 in guilloche cornerpieces at each corner. The denomination "FÜNFZIG DEUTSCHE MARK" is inscribed in large gothic lettering within a central scalloped medallion of fine lathe-work. A detachable coupon to the right carries a further guilloche rosette with the numeral 50 printed in red-brown, and the anti-counterfeiting warning legend appears in small letterpress text along the lower margin of the main note. |
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| Comments |
The Deutsche Notenbank was the central bank of the Soviet occupation zone, and this 1948 issue predates the formal establishment of East Germany by a year. The note was produced by Giesecke & Devrient at their Leipzig plant — the firm's eastern operation, which would eventually be nationalized and reorganized under the GDR. The western parent company in Munich continued independently, a rare case of a single printing house split by the Iron Curtain and operating on opposite sides of it simultaneously.
Pick #14 is scarce in circulated grades above Fine; the 50 Mark denomination saw heavy use in a zone where consumer goods were chronically short and black market valuations made large-denomination notes move fast.