Catalog
10 Pfennig Wiesa; Officer PoW Camp
| Issuer | Offizier-Gefangenen-Lager Wiesa bei Annaberg |
|---|---|
| Year | 1916 |
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| In circulation to | Yes |
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| Obverse description | Black letterpress on blue underprint, with a rectangular border frame. The Saxon coat of arms appears as a vignette at centre, flanked by the denomination numeral '10' in each corner. Two manuscript signatures appear at lower left and lower right, with handstamp in red at right. The printer's imprint 'JOHANNES PÄSSLER, DRESDEN-N.' is set along the lower margin. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 10 OFFIZIER-GEFANGENEN-LAGER WIESA BEI ANNABERG Der Kriegsgefangene, Inhaber dieses Gutscheines, erhält bei seiner Entlassung nach der Heimat oder Ueberweisung in ein anderes Lager gegen Rückgabe den Betrag von ZEHN PFENNIG von der Verwaltung für Gefangenengeld des Offizier-Gefangenenlagers Wiesa bei Annaberg ausbezahlt. Der Schein gilt nur innerhalb des Lagers. Postoffizier Leutnant Wiesa bei Annaberg, 1. Januar 1916. Kommandant Rittmeister JOHANNES PÄSSLER DRESDEN-N. (Translation: Officer prisoner of war camp Wiesa near Annaberg. The prisoner of war, holder of this voucher, receives upon his release to the homeland or transfer to another camp upon return, the amount of ten pfennigs paid by the administration for prisoner money of the officer prisoner of war camp Wiesa near Annaberg. The note is valid only inside the camp. Postal Officer. Lieutenant. Wiesa near Annaberg, January 1, 1916. Commandant. Cavalry Captain.) |
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| Comments |
Wiesa, near Annaberg in Saxony, housed a German officer prisoner-of-war camp during the First World War, and camps at this level were required under the Hague Conventions to provide canteen and internal purchasing facilities for their inmates. This note is part of that administrative apparatus — internal scrip issued to prevent prisoners from accumulating Reichsmark currency that could fund escape attempts or be smuggled out.
Johannes Pässler of Dresden produced a number of these camp issues for facilities across Saxony, which accounts for the relatively consistent production quality compared to improvised issues from other regions. The 1916 date places this squarely in the period of maximum German prison camp population, before the 1917 prisoner exchange negotiations complicated internal camp economies considerably.