John L. writes: About 7 years ago, My father traveled to Germany. Just a couple days before he was coming back to USA, one of his German friends gave him an bank note. It Reihe 1 on the upper left corner, and has a green printing of Reichsbanknote on the upper central side of the paper money. On the middle-right side of the note there is a green picture of a lady with long hair. Under the Lady, there is a “50” sign. On the lower left side of the note, there are two seals and between the seals there is some kind of writing. Above the writing and the seals, it prints “Berlin, den 24. June 1919”
“Reichsbankdirektorium”
Its serial number is in 6 digits.
Can you please tell me about how much this bank note would worth in the current market?
The German Imperial Bank Note that you have (Pick Cat#66) was issued in large numbers before the great inflation of the following years (1920-23). There seems to be a large number of these notes available. They probably became monetarily worthless rather quickly. They make nice souvenirs as the engraving is quite ornate. Value? In new condition, no folds, 4 sharp corners-about US$5, though catalog shows more. Circulated, free or a bit cheaper.
Note that this note is inexpensive and so are others, with a few exceptions, of this series and the following Weimer Republic notes…. but they are VERY HISTORIC and they are important witnesses to the events leading up to WW II. This is what paper money collecting is all about!
