Mark Lazarus
Hi, my name is Mark Lazarus, a commercial pilot by profession and a keen collector of German East Africa banknotes!
Over my many years of collecting, I have found various reference materials for German East Africa banknotes, however it has been difficult to decipher the permutations and combinations of all the varieties one comes across. This particularly as the information is fractured as well as available, understandably, only in German. As a result I decided to developed this website as a focal point for all things related to German East Africa banknotes.
If you are a collector, I hope you are able to find the information you are looking for with ease. If you are not a collector yet, I hope your interest is piqued and you discover this fascinating hobby for yourself. Either way, please enjoy yourself, it is my pleasure to have you here!
Claus Engelhardt
Based in Mannheim, Germany, a mathematics teacher by profession, Claus has exclusively collected German East Africa banknotes for over 20 years. Not only does he have an extensive and impressive collection of German East Africa banknotes, he has also taken the time to do a lot of in-depth analysis of every aspect of this area of collecting and has published a book called "Die Friedenausgaben der Deutsch-Ostafrikanischen Bank 1905 bis 1918 (The Peacetime Issues of the German East Africa Bank 1905 to 1918)".
He is well known in German East Africa banknote collecting circles and his knowledge about the subject and its nuances is vast. He is always happy to share his knowledge with fellow collectors and I am privileged to say lending his expertise in developing this website.
Vielen Dank Claus!
ABOUT US
Collecting banknotes from German East Africa (Deutsch Osafrika - DOA) is of particular interest to me, not only because they are a window into the fascinating and complex history of this part of the world, but also because they provide a wide variety and scope to a collector. From beautiful, conventionally printed, peacetime pre-war banknotes (the striking image of the lions here is in fact taken from one such note), to notes printed under constrained circumstances at the outbreak of World War I using a myriad of materials, to notes produced in jungles in the actual theater of war, these banknotes provide a rich and interesting area to enjoy collecting in! I have set up this website purely as a point of reference, with the aim of providing collectors with as much detail & history about all aspects of DOA banknotes. I hope it is useful to some and inspires others to start collecting banknotes!
Collecting banknotes from German East Africa (Deutsch Ostafrika - DOA) is of particular interest to me, not only because they are a window into the fascinating and complex history of this part of the world, but also because they provide a wide variety and scope to a collector. Not expressing any political view or opinion with regard to the history of the region, my only interest is to look into the setting in which the banknotes I collect.
All images of banknotes on the website are (unless otherwise stated), from my own collection.
Browse, enjoy, learn and of course repeat!