P017
Paper, Circulated VF P-63
140 x 90 mm
OBVERSE: World War I began on July 28, 1914. Germany entered the war four days later. By November 4, 1915, when this Zwanzig (20) Mark was issued, Germany was already 16 months into the war. Inflation had not yet kicked in. Illustrated are two muscular men upending cornucopias of enormous wealth. In the center, and to the left and right of the bill, are the stylized eagle logos, which have long been associated with German symbolism and the Reichsbank. Reichsbanknotes were issued between 1876 and 1945, and then replaced by the Deutsche Mark.
REVERSE: To the left is a portrait of a common worker, rolling up his sleeve to face the day’s labor, with the rising sun behind his right shoulder. To the right is a lovely portrait of a woman at rest as the moon and stars rise in the sky behind her. Nothing suggests a war raging beyond these two scenes.