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Deutsches Notgeld currency album

 Collection
Identifier: MS 084
Finding aid note: Stored off-site at the Library Service Center. Please request this material via woodson@rice.edu or call 713-348-2586.

Scope and Contents

This album of emergency paper currency measures 14-5/8”x11-5/8”x1-7/8” album with the printed title “Notgeld 1914-1924.” It contains approximately 640 separate pieces of the paper currency (Notgeld) issued by regional institutions in Germany and Austria-Hungary, primarily around the end of the World War I. Not issued by a central bank, Notgeld was not legal tender but rather an accepted means of payment in a particular locale.

The individual pieces on the 46 pages of the album are in excellent condition. They appear to have been acquired strictly for collecting, rather than having been preserved following circulation. Except for some of the items labeled Reichsgeld, they are printed front and back, and in at least three colors, including red, gold, black, green, blue, and shades of each. The size of a typical individual item is 3-9/16”x2-5/16”. The complexity of design in pieces of this small size reveals a high standard of printing.

Not all of the pieces are dated. Of those that are, the earliest are from 1921. Most are from the early 1920’s. The latest is a Reischesgeld dated 1928.

This material was assembled and arranged by a collector and was later acquired by the Fondren Library, pre-1969. Library records do not indicate the exact custodial history of the material such as the name of the collector or terms of transfer to Fondren.

Dates

  • 1914 - 1928
  • Majority of material found within 1914 - 1924

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This material is open for research.

Stored off-site at the Library Service Center. Please request this material via woodson@rice.edu or call 713-348-2586.

Conditions Governing Use

Permission to publish from this material must be obtained through the Woodson Research Center, Fondren Library, Rice University. woodson@rice.edu - 713.348.2586

Biographical / Historical

This Notgeld (German for “emergency money”) collection is tangible representation of how German and Austro-Hungarian citizens dealt with one of the worst inflationary periods ever experienced in the west, during the period of World War I. It came about because of the punitive damages demanded of governments by the Treaty of Versailles. Citizens who did not convert bank savings to tangible assets lost value almost completely. Bank accounts even as large as 100,000 pre-war Marks were closed because values plunged to what could buy a postage stamp. The middle class was reduced to poverty; pensions became worthless. Thus, to make regional commerce possible, local authorities like city banks and town governments ordered the printing of Notgeld as exemplified in this collection.

Extent

2 Linear Feet ( (1 album))

Language of Materials

German

Additional Description

Overview

This album of emergency paper currency measures 14-5/8”x11-5/8”x1-7/8” album with the printed title “Notgeld 1914-1924.” It contains approximately 640 separate pieces of the paper currency (Notgeld) issued by regional institutions in Germany and Austria-Hungary, primarily around the end of the World War I. Not issued by a central bank, Notgeld was not legal tender but rather an accepted means of payment in a particular locale.

Arrangement

The 46 pages are organized by region and labeled Deutschen Notgeld (27 pages), Osterreichisches Notgeld (6 pages), Fabrik-Industrie und Germeinde-Notgeld (8 pages), and Deutsches Reichsgeld (5 pages).

Immediate Source of Acquisition

This material was acquired by Fondren Library pre-1969 and records do not indicate their exact provenance.

Subjects

Record Groups

Related Names

Creator

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title
Guide to the Deutsches Notgeld currency album, 1914-1928
Status
Completed
Author
Amanda Focke and Mary Tobin
Date
2011
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
English

Repository Details

Repository Details

Part of the Woodson Research Center, Rice University, Houston, Texas Repository

https://library.rice.edu/woodson
Contact:
Fondren Library MS-44, Rice University
6100 Main St.
Houston Texas 77005 USA

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Harmful Content Statement
© 2023 Woodson Research Center
Fondren Library, Rice University
Physical Address: 6100 Main, Houston, Texas 77005-1827
Mailing Address: MS-44, P.O. Box 1892, Houston, Texas 77251-1892