500 DDR Mark and 200 DDR Mark: East Germany’s mysterious banknotes
During the last years of the Cold War, the East German state bank printed millions of 500 DDR mark and 200 DDR mark banknotes, but they were...
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- During the last years of the Cold War, the East German state bank printed millions of 500 DDR mark and 200 DDR mark banknotes, but they were never put into circulation. What was the reason for this, and how come these never-issued banknotes are routinely for sale on sites like Ebay?
Staatsbank der DDR - 500 mark banknote
Text on the 500 DDR mark banknote reads “Staatsbank der DDR Fünf Hundert Mark der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik 1985“. Other elements on the bill include the denomination ‘500’ and the national emblem of East Germany: a hammer and a compass, surrounded by a wreath of wheat ears.
- colour: brown
- dimensions: 160mm x 69mm
- composition material: paper
- front: hammer and compass, ring of wheat, German flag
- back: State Council building, East Berlin
Staatsbank der DDR - 200 mark banknote
Text on the 200 DDR mark banknote reads “Staatsbank der DDR Zwei Hundert Mark der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik 1985“. Other elements on the note include the denomination ‘200’ and the hammer, compass and ring of rye from socialist DDR East Germany’s national coat of arms.
- colour: green
- dimensions: 152mm x 66mm
- composition material: paper
- front: East German family, hammer and compass, wheat, flag
- back: children and teacher at school
East Germany's highest value banknotes
If the banknotes of 500 DDR mark and 200 DDR mark would have been put into circulation, they would have been East Germany’s highest value banknotes. In 1985 the highest denomination banknote in East Germany was the 100 DDR Mark banknote. West Germany’s highest value banknote on the other hand was a 1000 Deutsche mark bill.
In 1985, the average monthly salary in DDR East Germany was 1,130 DDR-mark. A banknote of 500 DDR mark would have been worth 44% of a worker’s monthly income. The UK’s average monthly salary in 2018 is £2,300 pounds. The value of a 500 DDR mark banknote would have been comparable to just over £1000 pounds in the UK today.
Why these banknotes were never issued
There are a number of theories about why the banknotes of 200 and 500 DDR-marks were never issued. A popular theory is that the value of the banknotes was deemed too high, and that introducing them might have caused inflation.
Another theory is that the banknotes were printed only to be issued in case of war with the West. This is similar to the $4 Billion cash the American Federal Reserve stored in a the Culpeper cold war bunker near Mount Pony, Virginia.
Source: welt.de
