Five Rupee

Field Notes - common reverse

One Rupee

Extremely rare Five (Uncirculated) and One (VF) Rupee, issued 1st July 1917:

These very rare notes were issued by von Lettow Vorbeck well after the fall of Tabora and Dar-es-Salaam (August 1916) to the British under General Smuts. (Dar-es-Salaam - throwback from Arabic slave trading days - stands for "haven of peace").

Image right: Dar-es-Salaam harbour as recorded by the German map makers in the 1800s.

The paper used in the five rupee note, as seen above, came from the special wrapping protecting the ammunition that was used by the guns on the Konigsberg. The strong threaded fabric was then used for the notes. One side is always shiny and smooth, the other side carrying the threaded gauze. The printing was done by way of a stamp - each piece of paper being individually stamped as the soldiers on the run had no printing press.

All thesenotes were individually signed by the officials Stelling and Kirst - an enormous task!

The very basic design of the note and the choice of paper reflect the primitive bush conditions under which they were created - obviously in the field like the boers Te Velde bank notes..

In fact the notes were created while Vorbeck was being pursued on the southern boundary of German East Africa by the British under the command of Smuts.

Despite the fact that Dar-es-Salaam and Tabora had fallen to the British the note above (see right panel) still carries the name "Daressalam" (as spelt by the Germans)