1910s

This is 50ℳ (Papiermarks or Paper Marks) of emergency money from the city of Stolberg. It is paper due to its material when gold was no longer linked to the Papiermark, shortly after the beginning of World War One. Notes were decorated with different artwork from artists and time period in Germany’s history. This note, in particular, features a stag in the wilderness on one side and has the Stolberg town hall on the other side. The wilderness reflects the hardy nature of the German people, who spent time outdoors earning their livelihood and boasted a strong, healthy population, as well as a reminder of Grimm’s fairy tales, which extensively feature German forests. The art style is simple but modern, as it was easier to print than detailed drawings, but were not modern enough to cause outrage.

This is a postcard with both the front and back. The front is a picture of two lovers: a soldier going off to war and a young woman holding flowers. The text on the front reads:
“In love, my very own-
You are my being’s dawn,
You give me new courage to live,
You are the heart I pray for,
And my life is good.”
On the back, the postcard was written on the 18th of September, 1916, and sent on the 20th of September, sent to a woman from her loved one fighting in World War One.

Front cover of “Jungdeutschland” cardbook