us-005578-irn43890-irn58660
type: RecordSet
archival history: The currency was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2012 by Harold Minuskin.
biographical history: Henikel (Henach) Minuskin was born on July 22, 1938, to Shlamke, born on March 12, 1905, and Shanke Orlinsky Minuskin, born on September 17, 1914. He had one brother, Kalmanke, born on August 17, 1940. All of the family members were born in Zhetel, Poland (Dziatlava, Belarus). They lived in a home built by his father and his four brothers. Shlamke owned a bus transportation business. Shanke was trained as a hairdresser and manicurist. On September 17, 1939, the Soviets invaded and occupied eastern Poland, and Zhetel came under Soviet control. Shortly after the invasion, Shlamke prepared a secret hiding place under the outhouse in the backyard. On June 30, 1941, Germany invaded the Soviet Union and occupied Zhetel. The persecution of Jews became increasingly violent and on July 23, 1941, German mobile killing units murdered about 120 prominent members of the Jewish community, including Harold’s maternal uncle, Leib Orlinsky. On February 22, 1942, the Germans put up posters ordering all Jews to move into the ghetto which was established in the area where Harold’s family lived. They had to share their home with several others. On August 6, 1942, the Germans began the final liquidation of the ghetto. Shlamke was rounded up during the massacre and locked with hundreds of others in the synagogue. He was able to hide in the rafters in the midst of the confusion. After two days, he escaped into the Belorussian forest and joined the Jewish partisan resistance. During this time, Henik, Kalmanke, Sonia, and eight others hid in the underground hiding place. After three days, Shanke decided to flee with her sons to the nearby forest. Harold’s grandmother, Rivka Orlinsky, suffered from poor eyesight, so an aunt remained behind with her. Both were captured by the Germans and shot and killed the following day. Shanke and the boys received shelter and food from some peasants and farmers that Shanke knew, but many were afraid of the Germans and would not help. They slept in ditches a…
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Rectangular offwhite paper currency with a graphic design in reddish brown and green ink. The face has a green and purple/brown double helix background with 1000 mark printed within the helices, within a geometric border. In the upper left is the serial letter N in black ink and serial number 126015 in red ink. On the left is the denomination 1000 in large font, above 5 lines of German fraktur text. In the center is the textual denomination, Tausend Mark, 6 lines of text, and 4 signatures, superimposed over a green watermark of the denomination 1000 within a scroll design. Flanking the signatures is the Reichdirecktorium seal with a Reichsadler. In the upper right corner are the letters CD in bold font. The back has a brown, interlocked geometric background. In the center is an ornate green diamond and scroll shaped design with the denomination 1000 flanked by MARK in large black and green font superimposed on a rectangular, brown, interlocked, geometric background. The note is discolored and slightly creased.
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
date: 1923 January 01, approximately 1946
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has or had some members with language: deu
has record set type: Item
identifier: irn58660
is or was included in: us-005578-irn43890
record resource extent: overall: Height: 3.375 inches (8.573 cm) | Width: 6.250 inches (15.875 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: German bank note for 1000 marks acquired by 8 year old Henikel (Harold) Minuskin before he and his family left Germany for the US in 1946. It was issued during the Weimar Republic in 1923. Henikel lived in Zhetel (Zdieciol) Poland (Dziatlava, Belarus), with his parents Shlamke and Shanke, and his younger brother Kalmanke. In June 1941, Zhekel was occupied by Nazi Germany. The Jews of the town were violently persecuted and over 120 prominent community members, including Henikel's uncle Leib, were shot. On February 22, 1942, all Jews were relocated to a ghetto. That August, the Germans began preparations to liquidate the ghetto. His father escaped to the nearby forest and joined the Jewish partisan resistance. His mother took 3 year old Henikel and 1 year old Kalmanke to an underground hiding place. After three days, they escaped to the forest. His father found them hiding in a root cellar and brought them to live with the Lenin Partisan Brigade in the Lipichanski forest in Poland (Bialowieza Forest, Poland and Belarus) from 1942-1944. Shlamke participated in the guerrilla action against the Germans, while Shanke repaired and sewed clothing. The area was liberated by the Soviet Army in September 1944. When the war ended in May 1945, the family went to Zeilsheim displaced persons camp in Germany. With the assistance of the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS), the family emigrated to the United States, arriving in New York on September 6, 1946.
title: Weimar Germany Reichsbanknote, 1000 marks, kept by a Polish Jewish refugee