Help Needed With German Inflation Stamps And Overprints

I have a few hundred German Overprints and Inflation stamps, I have read some information on them but it is overwhelming and in many different locations! Some are of more value if used, some unused some it depends on the watermark... Here are some samples of what I have. What should I be looking for and are what ones would be more worth value? Are they any great websites that are easy to understand and help with id and value. The books at my library are checked out so that is of no help!

Yup, that's what Germany is, all over the place & LOTS of it. Pick an era or field & you've got a lifetime's worth of collecting.

I don't know of any specific German sites which will help what you're after but I can give you some pointers.

First, a catalogue of Germany is essential & needs to be studied. Scott's is good & has information on which stamps were overprinted & where to find them. If you're semi-serious them Michel German Specialised is the way to go. For the serious collector there are many specialised handbooks to keep you happy. (My Upper Silesia Handbook is 4½ inches thick!)

From what you've got, the top 2 pix are from East Germany (Deutsche Demokratische Republik), & are the later official reprints for stamp collectors which every schoolboy collection had in abundance & which are valueless. It's the position of the last "e" in "Deutsche" which is important


LEFT - Original Print. RIGHT - Philatelic Reprint

Anything with "Tausend", "Million" & "Milliarde" is from the Inflation period 1922-23

"Dienst", or what looks like "Dienft" is Official so BOB for Scotts

Finally, "Rumanien" on the German "Germania" type is from Romania, WWI. The Germania issues were extensively surcharged & overprinted during & after WWI.

Thank you! Great information! So what is it exactly about the Es? The vertical line on the original E looks thinner that the other one. What about watermarks?

There are several distinct differences, but the position of the E is the most obvious one. If the last E is somewhere between the A and T of 'Demokratische' you have plate 1 (original print). If the E is above the A it is a plate 2 (official reprint).

Thank you! Very helpful!

Yeapolska,
The picture that you posted showing the placement of the letters on the (DDR Scott A43), is this just for the litho stamps from 1953 or does it apply to the typo and other variations of these stamps?

jol34
Yes, the pic (from the Michel catalogue) applies to all the litho, typo & even the overprinted new value ones. All of the Five-Year-Plan definitives were reprinted, the "cancellations" being printed too, there must be millions of them out there. As I mentioned, they're virtually valueless whereas the original printings have a bit of value, some of the higher values being catalogued over $10 used.

Then I have three stamps (1953) in my collection. I did not know about this letter difference. And I thought I had the whole lot of them! (with watermarks) I put these 3 in my album because I liked the postmark -different from the usual CTO..I guess I still have a long way to go. Somehow that makes me feel good. Thank you.

bill

Ccholley,
Welcome to the maze that's called German stamps! It is a complicated but interesting country to collect.

The first three stamps from the DDR are part of the "Five-Year Plan series." Depending on how you count (design, perforations, printing method, surcharges, watermarks) there are over 70 different stamps in the series.
Here's a good overview from a blog by one of our SCF members:

http://www.stampcollectingblog.com/...n-stamps.php

Here's a good breakdown by catalog number:

http://www.jaypex.com/Germany/DDR5YearPlan.htm

The "E over A" difference between CTO's and original stamps applies only to the first offset printing of the Five-Year Plan stamps. They destroyed the original offset plates and had to do a re-print so there was a variation in design. You can only distinguish used from CTO stamps on the remainder of the series by the cancellation or the presence of gum on the cancelled stamp. Most collectors don't bother with that distinction. All mint stamps are original.

As mentioned in earlier posts, you also have some early Republic stamps, some hyperinflation era stamps, another interesting and complicated series, some officials (Dienstmarke) and a rather "experienced" Germania series stamp with a Romanian occupation overprint.

I don't have any websites to point you toward for these stamps but there are a number of very knowledgeable people on the forum that can help you with those.

Have fun!
Dan