Germania Overprint Unlisted (?) In Michel

I have 3 sets of 11 each with black, green and red overprints.
Any insights would be appreciated.

The red blob looks like a coat of arms of terrible quality. Those may be from previously occupied countries, or local cancellations, or fantasies.

What do the others look like?

Edit: Philastempel does not return any cancellations for "NEUWELT." In Polish, it would be Nowy Swiat, but it is doubtful any of those are the source.

Novy Svet in Harrachsdorf?

Here is another

"Neuwelt" is listed on the stampsx website. It's in Sachsen (Saxony). Cancellation is good. I have never seen the overprint before. My guess would be someone playing around with a stamped ink set.

Didn't notice this before, but all have this mark on the back, bottom right.

The backstamp has to be a fake. The backstamp was used to expertise postmarks of Inflation stamps of the late 1920's 1919-1923. The Germania stamps are from 1900-1918.

Corrected the time period.

The Infla Berlin Backstamp is the backstamp that puts shivers down the spines of Germany collectors all over Europe. Basicly you always question if it is right.

Figure of Death with an axe and possibly a scythe. At Death's feet two severed heads, at a guess. German Expressionist "guerrilla" art?

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuwe...hwarzenberg)

"We are making a new world" is a painting by Paul Nash of the sun rising above Inverness Copse. Kind of fits in with the image of Death.

An overprint like this is supposed to have been created in Aachen in mid-November 1918 by the local Workers and Soldiers Soviet though there is doubt about this.

The few (possibly) used stamps are known cancelled with a red CDS, "AACHEN / 20.11.18 / ASR".

"ASR" here is short for "Arbeiter-und-Soldatenrat".

These are discussed in the book, Philatelic Witness by Wolfgang Baldus, which describes stamps associated with various revolutions over the years.

I see there is an image of the overprint in the Michel German Specialised catalogue which describes the ASR stamps as "reine Phantasieprodukte", i.e. pure fantasy products.

NIGELC is correct the overprint is from Aachen . It was produced by the Workers and Soldiers Council of Aachen in 1918 . This overprint appears on various Germania stamps in four colors.

The Michel catalogue recognized it that any stamp with this design as a fantasy product ,maybe the stamp dealer was the one who concocter of this or was one of the promoters of this cancel.

I have this cancel in two colors .Let me put up my copy .

Here is a post card that explains this subject better from my collection .This was mailed to Hawaii .

Thank you to all who provided such useful information.

Thank you, Nigelc, for finding the image in the Michel Specialized. Here it is:

I also found further information in a book specializing in the Germania series, "100 Jahre Germania" by Michael Jaschke-Lantelme, 1999.



The short summary is that Germania stamps were overprinted to block out the symbol of German power. They are not collectible historic documents, mainly because the separatist movement was too short-lived.

But they have a very interesting backstory and if I owned the stamps I would include them in my album.