Catalog
2 Pfennigs Lechfeld; PoW Camp
| Issuer | Kriegsgefangenenlager Lechfeld (Prisoner of War Camp Lechfeld) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1915 |
| Type | Vouchers |
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| Obverse description | Red paper voucher with black letterpress text on a decorative border composed of repeated ornamental units framing the entire note. The denomination numeral "2" appears at left and right centre, with the camp name at top and the value in words at centre. The printer's imprint "Himmer, Augsburg" appears at the lower margin below the issue date of 15 November 1915. Three cancellation holes are visible at left. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Kriegsgefangenenlager Lechfeld. Gutschein über zwei Pfennige. Lager Lechfeld, 15. November 1915. Himmer, Augsburg (Translation: Prisoner of war camp Lechfeld. Voucher for two pfennigs. Lechfeld Camp, November 15, 1915) |
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| Comments |
Lechfeld was a Bavarian military airfield and training ground repurposed early in the war as a prisoner of war enclosure. The camp's internal currency was a practical necessity — German military authorities across all major PoW installations were required under standing orders to prevent Reich coinage from circulating among prisoners, both to limit smuggling and to control purchasing within camp canteens. J. P. Himmer of Augsburg, a well-established regional commercial printer, handled several such contracts for Bavarian camp administrations during 1915.
Red paper stock was not decorative — different denominations were distinguished by colour to reduce substitution fraud within the camp economy.