TY - MANSCPT DB - Science History Institute DP - Science History Institute M2 - Courtesy of Science History Institute. Rights: Public Domain Mark 1.0 TI - Friedrich Bayer & Company Fünf Millionen Mark Gutschein ID - nc580n484 PB - Friedrich Bayer & Co. CY - Leverkusen, Germany DA - 1923/08/01/ YR - 1923 AV - Robert J. Bauman collection VL - Robert J. Bauman collection AN - Robert J. Bauman collection UR - https://digital.sciencehistory.org/works/nc580n484 AB - This Fünf Millionen Mark Gutschein, or five million Mark voucher, was issued by Friedrich Bayer & Company. Design includes a cartouche containing a winged lion with caduceus and globe as well as the Bayer logo. The verso was overprinted with the plant site and was signed by the plant manager. Paper features a watermark design. The Friedrich Bayer & Company initially manufactured synthetic dyes before expanding their industry to include pharmaceuticals, notably Aspirin, as well as other products including polycarbonates and polyurethanes. The particular plant listed is the Weiler-ter Meer plant, named after Edmund ter Meer, a German chemist who discovered the ter Meer reaction for dyes. The Weiler-ter Meer Company later merged with Bayer. This German company scrip is an example of the hyperinflation which occurred in Germany after World War One as a result of reparation costs. Due to the devaluation of the Mark, companies began issuing their own currency that employees could use within their company stores. The high value of this currency is indicative of the hyperinflation of the Mark whose value decreased drastically from early 1923 through November 1923. KW - Friedrich Bayer & Co. KW - Currency question KW - Dye industry KW - Pharmaceutical industry KW - Chemical industry KW - Corporations KW - Bauman, Robert Joel KW - Chemische Fabriken vorm. Weiler ter Meer LA - German ER -