2 Heller Kleinmünchen; PoW Camp

Kleinmünchen was an Austro-Hungarian prisoner-of-war camp established near Linz in Upper Austria during the First World War, housing primarily Russian and Serbian captives. Camp scrip of this kind was issued to prevent prisoners from acquiring Austrian currency that could facilitate escape attempts — a practical security measure adopted across the Habsburg internment system.

Campbell 1396 is among the lower denominations in the Kleinmünchen series, which ran to several Heller and Kronen values. Paper camp issues from this facility are considerably scarcer than their metal counterparts from comparable Austro-Hungarian installations, as the paper suffered heavily from damp barrack conditions.