us-005578-irn616248-irn616287
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Theresienstadt scrip printed on rectangular, off-white paper in blue and black ink. The paper contains a watermark in the form of a repeating geometric pattern. On the face is a rectangle with geometric patterning and a wide, off-white margin to the right. On the left, within the rectangle, is a vignette with an image of Moses holding 2 stone tablets inscribed with the 10 Commandments in Hebrew. To his right, is the denomination centered between lines of German text. In the lower right corner is a Star of David with the denomination below. The reverse has a rectangle with geometric patterning and a wide, off-white margin to the left. Within the rectangle is a central brown streak, medallion, German text above and below a scrollwork line, the denomination on the upper right, and signature on the lower right. In the lower left corner is the denomination below a Star of David in a striped circle. The serial number in the upper left corner and the series letter on the lower right are both in red ink. On the face, there is a large crease on the lower left corner and a smaller crease on the lower right corner.
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
is or was included in: us-005578-irn616248
identifier: irn616287
biographical history: Selma Ansbacher (nee Schlossberger, 1897-1956) was born in Wachbach, Germany to Bertha Schlossberger (nee Strauss, 1864-1936) and Sigmund Schlossberger (1863-1942, died from chronic illness). She had four siblings: Palma (1894-?), Josef (1899-?), Hedwig (later Holzer, 1903-1995), and Gisela (later Levi, later Feuchtwanger, 1906-2003). In 1921, at 24 years old, she married Ludwig Ansbacher (1888-1950), a veteran of the German army in World War I. Ludwig lost an eye during the war and was awarded the Iron Cross for his service. Initially he worked in the family business as a cattle dealer and later ran a fabric store. The couple had three children: Manfred (1922-2012), Heinz (1925-1942), and Sigrid (b. 1928). The family lived in Dinkelsbühl, Germany, in an apartment above Ludwig’s fabric store. Hitler came to power in 1933 and Ludwig was forced to close his store after the Nuremberg Laws were passed in 1935. He then began to work as a traveling fabric salesman, riding his bike into the countryside to sell to farmers. The family attended an Orthodox synagogue, and had many good friends that were non-Jewish. However, those relationships changed as anti-Semitism increased. In 1936, Manfred was sent by his parents to an agricultural school near Hanover; by 1939, he immigrated to Australia, changed his surname to Anson, and eventually joined the Australian army. In 1937, anti-semitism in the small town had grown so much that the family decided to re-locate to Frankfurt, joining extended family. The Ansbacher family did not live in Frankfurt’s central Jewish neighborhood, and therefore avoided the vandalism and damaged stores of the Kristallnacht attacks on November 9-10, 1938. The following day, however, the SS arrested Ludwig, sending him and 10,000 other Jews to Buchenwald concentration camp, where they received extremely cruel treatment. Ludwig was sent home after 2-3 weeks and Selma attempted to obtain paperwork for the family to immigrate to America. The United States…
has or had identifier: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn616248-irn616287/alternateIDs/2
record resource extent: overall: Height: 2.750 inches (6.985 cm) | Width: 5.500 inches (13.97 cm)
date: 1943 January 01, after 1943 May-before 1945 May 09
title: Theresienstadt ghetto-labor camp scrip, 50 kronen note, belonging to a German Jewish woman
has or had some members with language: deu
results or resulted from: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn616248-irn616287/acquisitions/1
scope and content: Scrip, valued at 50 kronen, distributed to Selma Ansbacher and her family in Theresienstadt ghetto-labor camp in German-occupied Czechoslovakia between May 1943 and May 1945. At Theresienstadt, currency was confiscated from inmates and replaced with scrip, which could only be used in the camp. Before the war, Selma’s husband, Ludwig Ansbacher, owned a fabric store in the small town of Dinkelsbühl, Germany. In 1937 they moved to Frankfurt. They sent their oldest son Manfred to an agricultural school near Hanover and he immigrated to Australia by 1939. In May 1942, their son Heinz was deported to Majdanek killing center in German-occupied Poland and was killed in August. Selma, Ludwig, and their daughter Sigrid were deported to Theresienstadt ghetto-labor camp in German-occupied Czechoslovakia in September 1942. Initially, Selma worked as a group leader in the kitchen, peeling potatoes for soups. She later worked in the mica-splitting facility, a job that contributed to the war effort, which she tried to use as leverage when Sigrid was assigned to a transport out of Theresienstadt. In 1944, Sigrid was deported to a number of concentration camps, including Auschwitz in German-occupied Poland and Bergen-Belsen in Germany, where she was liberated by British forces on April 15, 1945. Selma and Ludwig remained at Theresienstadt until the Soviet Army liberated the camp on May 9, 1945. The couple moved back to Frankfurt before immigrating to the United States in July 1946, where Sigrid joined them the following December.
has record set type: Item
has or had identifier: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn616248-irn616287/alternateIDs/1
has or had some members with language: heb
has or had holder: us-005578
type: RecordSet
archival history: The scrip was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2016 by Sigrid Jean Ansbacher Strauss.