Theresienstadt ghetto-labor camp scrip, 10 kronen note 2004.705.15 front
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Washington, United States
Scrip, valued at 10 kronen, issued in Theresienstadt (Terezin) ghetto-labor camp in 1943. All currency was confiscated from deportees upon entry and replaced with scrip and ration coupons that could be exchanged only in the camp. The currency was designed by inmate Peter Kien and printed by the National Bank of Prague. Inmates received the scrip according to a 5-tiered distribution system or payment schedule for conscript labor arranged by the Jewish Council of Elders who administered the daily life of the ghetto for the Germans. It is unclear what, if anything, could be purchased with the scrip, which was printed in great volume. The Germans had the scrip issued to instill a sense of normalcy within the huge ghetto. Theresienstadt camp, located in German occupied Czechoslovakia, existed for 3.5 years, from November 24, 1941 to May 9, 1945. Approximately 140,000 Jews were sent to Theresienstadt; nearly 90,000 were deported to near certain death in the east, and roughly 33,000 died in the camp, most of disease and starvation.
Scrip, valued at 10 kronen, issued in Theresienstadt (Terezin) ghetto-labor camp in 1943. All currency was confiscated from deportees upon entry and replaced with scrip and ration coupons that could be exchanged only in the camp. The currency was designed by inmate Peter Kien and printed by the National Bank of Prague. Inmates received the scrip according to a 5-tiered distribution system or payment schedule for conscript labor arranged by the Jewish Council of Elders who administered the daily life of the ghetto for the Germans. It is unclear what, if anything, could be purchased with the scrip, which was printed in great volume. The Germans had the scrip issued to instill a sense of normalcy within the huge ghetto. Theresienstadt camp, located in German occupied Czechoslovakia, existed for 3.5 years, from November 24, 1941 to May 9, 1945. Approximately 140,000 Jews were sent to Theresienstadt; nearly 90,000 were deported to near certain death in the east, and roughly 33,000 died in the camp, most of disease and starvation.
- Title: Theresienstadt ghetto-labor camp scrip, 10 kronen note 2004.705.15 front
- Location: Czechoslovakia--History--1938-1945--Currency., Czechoslovakia--History--1938-1945--Currency.
- Provenance: The Theresienstadt scrip was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2004 by the Estate of Robert L. White., The Theresienstadt scrip was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2004 by the Estate of Robert L. White.
- Subject Keywords: Concentration camps--Economic aspects--Czech Republic--Terezin (Ustecky kraj) Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Czechoslovakia--Currency. Jewish ghettos--Economic aspects--Czech Republic--Terezin (Ustecky kraj) World War, 1939-1945--Concentration camps--Czech Republic--Terezin (Ustecky kraj)--Currency., Concentration camps--Economic aspects--Czech Republic--Terezin (Ustecky kraj) Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Czechoslovakia--Currency. Jewish ghettos--Economic aspects--Czech Republic--Terezin (Ustecky kraj) World War, 1939-1945--Concentration camps--Czech Republic--Terezin (Ustecky kraj)--Currency.
- Type: Exchange Media, Exchange Media
- Rights: Permanent Collection, Permanent Collection
- External Link: See the full record at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, See the full record at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
- Medium: Theresienstadt scrip printed on rectangular, offwhite paper with a graphic design on the face in black and blue ink on a blue patterned background. On the left is a medallion with an image of Moses holding 2 stone tablets with the 10 Commandments in Hebrew characters; to the right is the denomination 10 and German text. On the right side is a wide, offwhite border with the denomination 10 in the bottom corner below a 6-pointed Star of David. The reverse has a blue geometric background design with a central purple streak, German text, an engraved signature, and a scrollwork line. The denomination 10 is in the upper right corner. On the left side is a wide, off-white border with the denomination 10 in the lower corner below a 6-pointed Star of David. The plate letter and number A021 are in the upper left corner. The scrip is discolored, stained, and very worn at the edges and the center fold., Theresienstadt scrip printed on rectangular, offwhite paper with a graphic design on the face in black and blue ink on a blue patterned background. On the left is a medallion with an image of Moses holding 2 stone tablets with the 10 Commandments in Hebrew characters; to the right is the denomination 10 and German text. On the right side is a wide, offwhite border with the denomination 10 in the bottom corner below a 6-pointed Star of David. The reverse has a blue geometric background design with a central purple streak, German text, an engraved signature, and a scrollwork line. The denomination 10 is in the upper right corner. On the left side is a wide, off-white border with the denomination 10 in the lower corner below a 6-pointed Star of David. The plate letter and number A021 are in the upper left corner. The scrip is discolored, stained, and very worn at the edges and the center fold.
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