The cover illustrated was censored by Mexican, United States, and German censors. There are two groups of markings related to German censorship which have thus far escaped my research.
The German censorship office in Paris France was responsible for censoring mail to the International Red Cross in Geneva.
The first marking is the large black "2500". I have only seen this on covers originating in Mexico dated between May 5, 1944 and July 5, 1944, which means they were likely processed during a later 2 month period (I am not sure what the travel time between Mexico and France via Lisbon would have been, but suspect it would have been 2-4 weeks).
The second question relates to the pencil markings "1626/24" at the top left, and "7155/17" at the lower left. I was once told the "7" in "7155" indicated Berlin censorship, and that the "155" related to a date, but I have never encountered a written study which explained this in a manner that I could use as a citation.
These penciled markings are also found on a number of POW/Internee covers from other countries to the ICRC/Geneva.
Any suggestions as to their meaning, and especially to literature where they are described would be appreciated.
Mike L.
Posted 03/18/2018 4:34 pm
