us-005578-irn515841-irn531684
identifier: irn531684
is or was included in: us-005578-irn515841
has record set type: Item
has end date: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/dates/1947-12-31
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Chinese currency on rectangular offwhite paper with blue ink. The face has a rectangular border with a latticework pattern and corner embellishments with the denomination 10 in Chinese characters. There is a realistic portrait bust of a Chinese male, Sun Yat-sen, in the center, with an embellishment with Chinese text to each side. The serial number in red ink is in the upper left and right with 6 Chinese characters in the center. There are 2 square Chinese seals in red ink in the bottom left and right. The back has a rectangular border with a beehive pattern and corner embellishments with the denomination 10. There is a medallion with the denomination 10 on the left and right sides and TEN YUAN in the bottom center. In the background is an image of a large stone building with a terraced garden and long stepped approach, the Sun Yat-sen mausoleum. The currency is creased, soiled, and has orange stains.
archival history: The currency was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2004 by Arleen Tievsky, the executor of the Estate of Peter Victor.
biographical history: Peter Max Victor was born in Munich, Germany, on April 19, 1920, the only child of Carl Nathan and Elsa Alexander Victor. Carl was born in Gusten on May 1, 1879, to Louis (1832-1901) and Henrietta Pels Victor (1850-1940). Carl had a sister, Rebecca (1881-1970) who married a gentile, Gustav Adler (1882-1958), and had two sons. Elsa was born on December 25, 1888. Carl served in the Germany Army during World War I (1914-1918.) Carl was a poet and chemist and owner of a food dye and preservatives factory. Elsa worked with the business. In 1924, the family moved to Berlin. The family was well off and Jewish, but not especially observant. After the establishment of the Nazi dictatorship in Germany in 1933, anti-Jewish legislation and restrictions became increasingly harsh. Carl’s business was not restricted and it converted to produce war rations for the Army. After the Kristallnacht destruction of November 9-10, 1938, the family decided to leave Germany. They bought tickets for Shanghai, China, because it was an open port with no visa requirements. Peter left Germany on May 15, 1939, and arrived in Shanghai on June 14. Carl sold the family’s furniture and his factory. Jews could take almost no money out of Germany. Carl entrusted the sale proceeds to a friend who said he would transfer it to a bank in Shanghai, but never did. Carl and Elsa arrived in Shanghai in June 1939 on the Conte Rosso. They lived together in a small room, but life was difficult because they were penniless. Peter worked odd jobs in a hospital and community kitchen. Both of his parents contracted tropical diseases. Carl died, 61, of amoebic dysentery on November 29, 1940. Elsa developed diabetes because of the lack of adequate food and, at age, 54, passed away on May 9, 1942. Peter had to move to Hongkew ghetto in 1943 and got a job as a lifeguard at Hongkew Park, a country club for the elite of the Japanese occupation authorities. The war in Europe ended with Germany's surrender on May 7, 1945. Shan…
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
record resource extent: overall: Height: 3.250 inches (8.255 cm) | Width: 6.500 inches (16.51 cm)
scope and content: 10 yuan note, occupation currency issued by the Central Reserve Bank of China acquired by Peter Victor when he lived as a refugee in Shanghai, China, from 1938-1947. This was the bank set up by the puppet government installed by the Japanese in Nanjing in 1941, and also known as the State Bank of the Republic of China government in Nanjing. This emergency currency was issued to deal with the high inflation rates caused by the war. Peter, 18, left Berlin for Shanghai in 1938 to escape the anti-Jewish policies of the Nazi-led government. His parents, Carl and Elsa, arrived in Shanghai in 1939. Carl died in 1940 and Elsa in 1942. Shanghai was liberated by the United States Army on September 3, 1945. With the aid of the American Joint Distribution Committee, Peter emigrated to America in December 1947.
results or resulted from: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn515841-irn531684/acquisitions/1
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
has or had some members with language: eng
has end date: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/dates/1940-12-31
has or had some members with language: zho
has beginning date: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/dates/1940-01-01
has or had identifier: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn515841-irn531684/alternateIDs/1
has or had holder: us-005578
title: Central Reserve Bank of China, 10 yuan note, acquired by a German Jewish refugee
type: RecordSet