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5 Pfennig Gefangenen-Lager
| Issuer | Gefangenen-Lager Chemnitz (Prisoner of War Camp, Chemnitz) |
|---|---|
| Year | |
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| Value | 5 Pfennigs (5 Pfennige) (0.05) |
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| Printer | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Letterpress note in blue and black on cream paper, enclosed within a fine ornate guilloche border. A central oval guilloche vignette frames the large bold numeral '5' in blue, flanked on either side by the denomination 'FÜNF PFENNIG' in bold black capitals, with the heading 'Gefangenen-Lager' in large type at top and 'GUT FÜR' in smaller capitals immediately below. A small Imperial German eagle vignette is positioned at lower left, an official circular cashier's stamp at lower right, and the issuing city 'Chemnitz.' with the disclaimer 'Kein öffentliches Zahlungsmittel.' inscribed at lower centre. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Printed in blue and black over a dense fine-line blue guilloche underprint covering the entire surface, with bold corner numerals '5' paired with 'Pfennig' inscriptions and six small Imperial German eagle vignettes distributed symmetrically across the upper and lower registers. At centre, an elaborate acanthus-scroll cartouche in black frames a rectangular text panel bearing the redemption clause in German. The printer's imprint 'ALEXANDER WIEDE, CHEMNITZ.' appears in small capitals at the foot. |
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| Comments |
POW camp scrip from Chemnitz occupies a narrow but genuinely important niche in German notgeld scholarship. These Lagergeld issues were a deliberate containment measure — internal camp currency prevented prisoners from accumulating Reichsmarks that could fund escape attempts or be smuggled out. Alexander Wiede was a local commercial printer, not a specialist security firm, which shows in the modest production values typical of municipal emergency issues from this period.
Chemnitz was a major industrial center, and its camp processed significant numbers of prisoners during the First World War. Camp scrip from smaller regional issuers like this one survived in far lower quantities than the better-documented Darmstadt or Döberitz series.