When I started my current project of preparing a huge not geld collection for sale I figured that there would be some historically interesting items turning up. After WWI most of the central European economies were faltering and suffering from severe coin shortages. This resulted in a flood of paper not geld notes being issued by local towns in most European countries especially Austria and Germany. Most issuers used designs illustrating local land marks, folk lore and history. In this case Mauthausen, Austria reflected on their own WWI history and the Prisoner of War Camp that was in their town. The front of the notes shows the town arms and denominations of 10, 20, or 50 heller. The back side has five standing men in military uniforms with a caption translating “Types of war prisoners in the Mauthausen Camp 1914-1918“. Based on the uniforms from left to right the men are Serbian, Italian, British, Black French Colonial soldier and a French Officer. The notes are not dated but were issued in 1920. This would be interesting enough but there is more. In 1938 Nazi Germany annexed Austria and within a few years set up one of their many brutal concentration camps where the old POW camp had been.
