Ghetto and Camp Currency, Correspondence and Related Artifacts, 1908-1945 | Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust

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Collection Overview

Title: Ghetto and Camp Currency, Correspondence and Related Artifacts, 1908-1945

Predominant Dates:1939 -- 1945

ID: RG-06/RG-06

Primary Creator: Gutkind, Jurek

Other Creators: Conversion Office for German Foreign Debts, Jonski, Jozef (1912-), Kasimir, Fidor, Medley, Jane, Veronika (Vera) Komlos (née Somogyi), (1901-1944), Jewish female, a resident of Budapest (-- 1944)

Extent: 0.0

Arrangement:

The arrangement scheme for the record group was imposed during processing in the absence of an original order. Materials are arranged by subject/creator, then by the identifier, as assigned by the processor.

Record group is comprised of seven collections: 1. Collection of ghetto and camp money; 2. Numismatic collection; 3. Collection of camp and ghetto correspondence; 4. Eva Beckman collection; 5. Collection of Nazi Germany emigration bonds; 6. Collection of Nazi-counterfeited British bank notes; 7. Collection of Sonderkommando tags.

Subjects: Ghetto-issued monetary scripts, wartime, Lodz ghetto monetary receipts, Monetary signs, receipts, scripts as substitute matters of ghetto money, wartime, Monetary signs and receipts in the Lodz Ghetto, 1940 -- 1944, Monetary surrogates in term of scripts, receipts, ghetto paper money issued in Theresiensdatd ghetto, Paper money and coins, Lodz ghetto, Theresienstadt Ghetto issued banknotes, design and appearance, Theresienstadt ghetto monetary receipts

Forms of Material: A Westerbork camp coupon for 10 cent, 1944, Eine Mark (One Mark) bill, signed by Mordechaj Rumkowski, the Jewish Elder of Lodz Ghetto May 1940, Fifty Kronen bill, issued 1 January 1943, signed by Jacob Eidelstein, Der Alsteste Der Juden, Five Kronen bill, issued 1 January 1943, signed by Jacob Eidelstein, Der Alsteste Der Juden, Monetary surogate scripts issued by the Westerbork internment camp administration, 1944, One hundred Kronen bill, issued 1 January 1943, signed by Jacob Eidelstein, Der Alsteste Der Juden, One Kronen bill, issued 1 January 1943, signed by Jacob Eidelstein, Der Alsteste Der Juden, Ten Kronen bill, issued 1 January 1943, signed by Jacob Eidelstein, Der Alsteste Der Juden, Ten Mark coin, issued in 1943, authorized by Mordechaj Rumkowski, Jewish Elder of the Lodz Ghetto, Twenty Kronen bill, issued 1 January 1943, signed by Jacob Eidelstein, Der Alsteste Der Juden, Two Kronen bill, issued 1 January 1943, signed by Jacob Eidelstein, Der Alsteste Der Juden, Zwanzig Mark (Twenty) bill, signed by Mordechaj Rumkowski, Jewish Elder of the Lodz Ghetto May 1940, Zwei Mark (Two) bill, signed by Mordechaj Rumkowski, Jewish Elder of the Lodz Ghetto May 1940

Languages: German, Dutch;Flemish, Polish

Abstract

This is an authentic collection of ghetto and camp currency, notes and slips that were issued by the ghetto administrations instead of real currency for internal usage in ghettos and camps. The issuance of ghetto money had to be authorized by German authorities. The record group is subdivided into the Lodz Ghetto collection, Theresienstadt Ghetto collection, and the camp collections. This record group also includes the banknotes of several European countries issued in the course of the 19th and 20th centuries. It also contains multiple artifacts related to mundane ghetto and camp life.

Scope and Contents of the Materials

The record group includes the banknotes of several European countries issued in the course of the 19th and 20th centuries; bonds issued by the Conversion Office for German Foreign Debts paid to German Jews for confiscated property; multiple artifacts related to ghetto and camp life, such as camp uniform, pottery from the Sobibor concentration camp, and Sonderkommando tags; and ghetto and camp correspondence, including letters and postcards written from the places of incarceration to relatives and friends. The camp correspondence collections includes Józef Jon ski’s correspondence from Dachau concentration camp, Jurek Gutkind’s corresponded with Anna Lipszyc from the Lublin prison and Buchenwald concentration camp, and there is a letter from Kasimir Fidor from Oranienburg concentration camp.

Collection Historical Note

This record group is comprised of collections--specifically those related to ghetto and camp scripts, a German-introduced surrogate for monetary signs. First, for example, Lodz and Theresienstadt ghettos printed the scripts of their own, while the other ghettos circulated local or German currency. Contrarily, many Nazi-German concentration camps operated with the scripts of their own. This coupon-like currency, printed by the camp administrations, was good only for inter-camp use. Also, in ghettos and camps, cigarettes and food could often serve as a currency-like commodities. (Food rarely had any true monetary value and often emerged on the initiative of the Jewish administration in Lodz and Theresienstadt.)

A monetary sub-collection contains banknotes of Weimar Republic. Once issued in the year of 1923, they illustrate an iniquitousness of hyperinflation, overwhelming the Weimar Republic. The very denominations of one hundred thousand and one hundred million serve as a proof of economic and financial crisis.

Banknotes issued in German-occupied countries and territories also exhibit differences in the status of control and occupation. Comparing the following banknotes--Five Kroner of Denmark of 1942, Five Belgian Francs of 1943, and the Five Ukrainian Karbovantsiv of 1942--one can see that Denmark and Belgian retained a currency of their own, in terms of language and design. However, the Ukrainian banknotes, issued by the German authorities in Ukraine reflects the status of an occupied territory, controlled by German military and civil administration.

Biographical Note

Jurek was a friend of Anna Lipszyc (see Anna Lipszyc Collection, RG-01.08) It is believed that he, a Polish auxiliary policeman, organized and provided all the necessary documents enabling Anna to maintain a false Polish identity. Jurek, being personally attached to Anna (or Anka), corresponded with her while she was in Germany. Jurek was falsely accused of accepting a bribe and imprisoned in Lublin by the German authority, ultimately being sentenced to a term at a concentration camp, Buchenwald. Jurek believed that he was slandered by his fellow Polish policemen. A testimony to his feelings for her, Jurek continued writing letters to Anna from Buchenwald.

Subject/Index Terms

Ghetto-issued monetary scripts, wartime
Lodz ghetto monetary receipts
Monetary signs, receipts, scripts as substitute matters of ghetto money, wartime
Monetary signs and receipts in the Lodz Ghetto, 1940 -- 1944
Monetary surrogates in term of scripts, receipts, ghetto paper money issued in Theresiensdatd ghetto
Paper money and coins, Lodz ghetto
Theresienstadt Ghetto issued banknotes, design and appearance
Theresienstadt ghetto monetary receipts

Administrative Information

Repository: Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust

Access Restrictions: No restrictions

Use Restrictions:

Copyrighted materials, credits to and references to the Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust are required

Digital copies might be available upon request

Preferred Citation: RG-06, Ghetto and Camp Currency, Correspondence, and Related Artifacts. Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust Archive.

Processing Information: Materials are primarily described using the local descriptive standards of the LA Museum of the Holocaust.

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Sub-Collection:

[Sub-Collection 1: RG-06.01, Ghetto and camp money, 1942 1945],
[Sub-Collection 2: RG-06.02, Numismatic Collection, 1919 -- 1945],
[Sub-Collection 3: RG-06.03, Correspondences of inmate like status, 1941--1945],
[Sub-Collection 4: RG-06.04, Eva Beckman Collection, 1942--1945],
[Sub-Collection 5: RG-06.05, Emigration Bonds, Nazi Germany, 1933],
[Sub-Collection 6: RG-06.06, Nazi counterfeited British bank notes, 1942 -- 1945],
[Sub-Collection 7: RG-06.07, Sonderkommando tags, 1942--1945],
[Sub-Collection 8: RG-06.08, The Last Letter of Veronika (Vera) Komlos (nee Somogyi)],
[All]

Sub-Collection 4: RG-06.04, Eva Beckman Collection, 1942--1945

This collection contains banknotes and receipts from ghettos.

Subject/Index Terms:: Theresienstadt ghetto monetary receipts; Theresienstadt ghetto, postal stamps; Jewish yellow stars of David, Jewish badges and patches

Creators:: Beckman, Eva

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 1: RG-06.04.01, Eva Beckman, Yellow Star of David, 1933--1945

A yellow star of David with the word "Jude." The star is cut out of yellow fabric and was worn by Jews as a means to identify them during the Third Reich.

Subject/Index Terms:: Beckman, Eva; Jewish yellow stars of David, Jewish badges and patches; Yellow Stars; family artifacts

Creators:: Beckman, Eva

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 2: RG-06.04.02, Eva Beckman Yellow Star of David, not cut out, 1933--1945

A yellow star of David with the word "Jude." The star is outlined on yellow fabric, but not cut out of the fabric. This star was worn by Jews as a means to identify them during the Third Reich.

Subject/Index Terms:: Beckman, Eva; Jewish yellow stars of David, Jewish badges and patches; Yellow Stars; family artifacts

Creators:: Beckman, Eva

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 3: RG-06.04.03, Eva Beckman, a Theresienstadt-stamp, 1933--1945

A substitute stamp made for the Theresienstadt Ghetto. The stamp has a picture of a pastoral landscape with trees, hills, and billowing clouds.

Subject/Index Terms:: Beckman, Eva; Theresienstadt (Czechoslovakia); Theresienstadt ghetto; Theresienstadt ghetto, postal stamps

Creators:: Beckman, Eva

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 4: RG-06.04.04, Eva Beckman, Theresienstadt, Eine Krone (One Krone), ghetto receipts, 1943

One Krone bill from 1943. It is part of a substitute currency made for, and only valid in, the Theresienstadt Ghetto. The front of the bill has a depiction on Moses with the Ten Commandments.

Subject/Index Terms:: Beckman, Eva; Theresienstadt (Czechoslovakia); Theresienstadt ghetto; Theresienstadt ghetto monetary receipts

Creators:: Jewish ghetto administration, Theresienstadt (1940 -- 1945); Beckman, Eva

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 5: RG-06.04.05, Eva Beckman, four Theresienstadt postal stamps, 1933--1945

Four stamps made for the Theresienstadt Ghetto as part of a substitute currency used only in the Theresienstadt Ghetto. The stamps have a picture of a pastoral landscape with trees, hills, and billowing clouds.

Subject/Index Terms:: Beckman, Eva; Theresienstadt (Czechoslovakia); Theresienstadt ghetto; Theresienstadt ghetto, postal stamps

Creators:: Beckman, Eva

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 6: RG-06.04.06, Eva Beckman, Theresienstadt, (Funf Kronen). ghetto receipts, 1943

A five Kronen bill, part of a substitute currency developed for the theresienstadt Ghetto and valid only in the Theresienstadt Ghetto. The front of the bill has a depiction of Moses and the Ten Commandments.

Subject/Index Terms:: Beckman, Eva; Theresienstadt (Czechoslovakia); Theresienstadt ghetto; Theresienstadt ghetto monetary receipts

Creators:: Jewish ghetto administration, Theresienstadt (1940 -- 1945); Beckman, Eva

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 7: RG-06.04.07, Eva Beckman, Theresienstadt, Funf Kronen (Five Kronen). ghetto receipts, 1943

A five Kronen bill issued January 1,1943 as part of a substitute currency made for, and only valid in, the Theresienstadt ghetto.

Subject/Index Terms:: Beckman, Eva; Theresienstadt (Czechoslovakia); Theresienstadt ghetto; Theresienstadt ghetto monetary receipts

Creators:: Jewish ghetto administration, Theresienstadt (1940 -- 1945); Beckman, Eva

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 8: RG-06.04.08, Eva Beckman, Theresienstadt, Hundret Kronen (One hundred Kronen), ghetto receipts, 1943

A one hundred Kronen bill from January 1, 1943, part of a substitute currency made for, and only valid in, the Theresienstadt Ghetto. The front of the bill has a depiction of Moses with the Ten Commandments.

Subject/Index Terms:: Beckman, Eva; Theresienstadt (Czechoslovakia); Theresienstadt ghetto; Theresienstadt ghetto monetary receipts

Creators:: Jewish ghetto administration, Theresienstadt (1940 -- 1945); Beckman, Eva

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 9: RG-06.04.09, Eva Beckman, Theresienstadt, Zehn Kronen (Ten Kronen), ghetto receipts, 1943

A ten Kronen bill, part of a substitute currency made for, and only valid in, the Theresienstadt Ghetto. The front of the bill has a depiction of Moses with the Ten Commandments.

Subject/Index Terms:: Beckman, Eva; Theresienstadt (Czechoslovakia); Theresienstadt ghetto; Theresienstadt ghetto monetary receipts

Creators:: Jewish ghetto administration, Theresienstadt (1940 -- 1945); Beckman, Eva

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 10: RG-06.04.09.01, Eva Beckman, Theresienstadt, Zehn Kronen (Ten Kronen) rear side, ghetto receipts, 1943

A ten Kronen bill issued January 1, 1943 as part of a substitute currency made for, and used only in, the Theresienstadt ghetto.

Subject/Index Terms:: Beckman, Eva; Theresienstadt (Czechoslovakia); Theresienstadt ghetto; Theresienstadt ghetto monetary receipts

Creators:: Jewish ghetto administration, Theresienstadt (1940 -- 1945); Beckman, Eva

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 11: RG-06.04.10, Eva Beckman, Theresienstadt, Theresienstadt, Zwanzig Kronen (twenty Kronen), ghetto receipts, 1943

A twenty Kronen bill issued January 1, 1943 as part of a substitute currency made for, and valid only in, the Theresienstadt Ghetto. The front side of the bill has a depiction of Moses with the Ten Commandments.

Subject/Index Terms:: Beckman, Eva; Theresienstadt (Czechoslovakia); Theresienstadt ghetto; Theresienstadt ghetto monetary receipts

Creators:: Jewish ghetto administration, Theresienstadt (1940 -- 1945); Beckman, Eva

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 12: RG-06.04.11, Eva Beckman, Theresienstadt Zwei Kronen (Two Kronen), ghetto receipts, 1943

A two Kronen bill, part of a substitute currency made for, and only valid in, the Theresienstadt Ghetto.

Subject/Index Terms:: Beckman, Eva; Theresienstadt (Czechoslovakia); Theresienstadt ghetto; Theresienstadt ghetto monetary receipts

Creators:: Jewish ghetto administration, Theresienstadt (1940 -- 1945); Beckman, Eva