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20 Heller Aschach POW Camp
| Issuer | K.u.k. Kriegsgefangenenlager Aschach an der Donau |
|---|---|
| Year | 1916-1918 |
| Type | Vouchers |
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| Obverse description | Light guilloche underprint with a small repeating floral pattern. The Austro-Hungarian double-headed eagle vignette is centred at the top, flanked by numeral "20" counters in each corner. The denomination "Zwanzig Heller" in Gothic blackletter script occupies the centre, with "Lagergeld" below; two manuscript signatures appear left and right above their respective title lines. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | K.u.k. Kriegsgefangenenlager in Aſchach a.D. Zwanzig Heller Lagergeld Verwaltungsoffizier. Lagerkommandant. HAAS & COMP. STEYR. (Translation: Imperial and Royal POW Camp at Aschach an der Donau Twenty Heller Camp Money Administration Officer. Camp Commandant.) |
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| Comments |
Aschach an der Donau was one of several large Austro-Hungarian prisoner-of-war camps established along the Danube during the First World War, holding predominantly Russian and Italian captives at various points in its operation. Like many camp installations of the period, Aschach issued its own internal scrip to control purchasing within the compound — a deliberate policy to prevent regular currency from being used to fund escapes or bribe guards.
Haas & Comp. of Steyr supplied printing services to several k.u.k. military installations in Upper Austria, which accounts for the relatively competent production quality compared to some improvised camp issues. The Heller denominations were practical for canteen transactions, keeping face values well below anything worth smuggling out.