The Hugo Stinnes Linien was founded in 1892 by 21 year old Hugo Stinnes, grandson of Mathias Stinnes, owner of one of the first river barge company that plied the inland waterways of Germany in the 1800s. The company was incorporated in 1902 as Stinnes GmbH, with multiple interests, including the Hugo Stinnes Linien, a shipping company that consisted of 30 ships flying the Hugo Stinnes flag, transporting goods to the Caribbean, Central and South America as well as East Asia. Unlike most of the emergency money of the day (notgeld), On August 18th, 1923 the company issued 5 million and 10 million Mark notes that were unlike most of the emergency money (notgeld) that was issued at that time, in that it was printed on watermarked paper with individual serial numbers. Upon Hugo’s untimely death in 1924, Hugo Stinnes GmbH consisted of more than 4,500 businesses and had over 600,000 employees, making it Germany’s largest employer. The two banknotes listed here are in Crisp Uncirculated condition and are a physical reminder of hyperinflation and nautical history.