1900: Reichspost issue 1-5 Mark from the very rare first experimental printing with wide 11 1/2 perforation and in slightly different colors, the 5 Mark value being the most spectacular as it shows a completly different design from the issued version. These rare stamps were used on four insured letters all from 1902 and franked according to the correct postal rates and sent from Heidelberg or Frankfurt (Main) to Ludwigshafen. The frankings are in fresh and extremely fine condition and the envelopes are also in a pristine state of conservation. As usual the reverse wax seals have been removed. Each of the four high values is unique in used condition and as such belongs to the major rarities of German philately.
Certifications: the covers are signed on the reverse by Ernst Stock and have Dr. Oechsner BPP (1997) and Jäschke-Lantelme BPP (2018) certificates.
Note: Like the 1900 Germania Reichspost Pfennig issues, the Mark values were printed before their official introduction in an experimental form differing from the later mass-produced stamps. The main difference lay in the perforation. In contrast to the later comb perforation of 14¼, the very small first print run of the 1, 2, 3, and 5 mark values had a wide line perforation of 11½. These stamps are sought-after rarities in mint condition, in used condition only these four examples are known. It is likely that the wide perforation, as well as the well-known bold inscription of the Germania first Pfennig issue, was used as a feature for immediate protection against counterfeiting (see also Michael Jäschke-Lantelme: 100 Jahre Germania, Dessau 1999; pp. 14ff.). Any forgeries with wider perforations would have been immediately noticeable, as the final stamps showed the fine perforation. It is interesting to note that as the 5 Mark belongs to the famous “Vortype“ that only exists as “Erstdruck”, there is a high probability that all the four Mark values belong to the same extremely rare “Erstdrucke” and not to the “Nachauflage” making them even more valuable, as these are except for the 5 Mark not priced in Michel. The senders/recipients of the letters were the chemists Dr. Richard Laiblin and Emil Kromm, who were evidently employed at BASF in Ludwigshafen.
Provenance: Offered individually at the 292nd Heinrich Köhler Rarities Auction (February 1997), as lots 592 to 595.
Michel 63B, 64IB, 65IIB, 66BP
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