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50 Pfennig Mannschaftsgefangenenlager
| Issuer | Mannschaftsgefangenenlager Salzwedel (POW Camp) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1916 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 50 Pfennigs (50 Pfennige) (0.50) |
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| Obverse description | Letterpress-printed Lagergeld note in black on grey-brown paper, enclosed within a decorative guilloche border; two large circular guilloche rosettes at left and centre-left each bear the bold numeral '50' in white, flanking a smaller central rosette, with the denomination legend 'PFENNIG' inscribed in a horizontal band. The issuing authority 'Mannschaftsgefangenenlager SALZWEDEL' runs along the upper margin, while the date 'SALZWEDEL, den 1. Januar 1916' appears at lower left and the camp commandant's autograph signature below the 'Der Kommandant' legend at lower right. A vertically oriented serial number occupies the right margin, and three lines of restrictive text at the foot of the note confine its validity to the camp and designated labour-detachment sales points. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Mannschaftsgefangenenlager SALZWEDEL 50 PFENNIG 50 SALZWEDEL, den 1. Januar 1916 Der Kommandant Dieses Lagergeld gilt nur als Zahlungsmittel im Lager und bei den für Arbeitskommandos bezeichneten Verkaufsstellen. Einlösung erfolgt nur durch das Gefangenenlager Salzwedel. Scheine, bei denen die Nummer ganz oder teilweise fehlt, werden nicht eingelöst. |
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| Comments |
Mannschaftsgefangenenlager Salzwedel was a German prisoner-of-war camp holding enlisted men — Mannschaft — rather than officers, a distinction that mattered legally under the 1907 Hague Conventions. Camp scrip like this 50 Pfennig note was introduced across the German POW system to prevent prisoners from accumulating Reichsmark currency, which could fund escape attempts or be used outside the wire.
Salzwedel's scrip was produced locally, not through a centralized Reich printing authority, which accounts for the crude execution common to this series. Surviving examples frequently show heavy handling — these notes circulated hard within a closed economy of canteen purchases and had no redemption value once the camp dissolved at the Armistice.