Postmark On Poland, 1924, Minr 203

Looks like "Wien," with "Besteht" at the bottom. So, a Polish stamp that has "passed through" Vienna and cancelled there? Under what circumstances might that happen? Or is there a better reading of the postmark?

Do not know the reason.

But I do know that it is Bestellt

"Bestellt" means deliivered and postmarks like this were used in Vienna when the mail was delivered. So most probably they have noticed that this stamp on an incoming item from Poland was uncancelled and then cancelled it with this mark

Besteht

If the word at the bottom is indeed "Bestellt," then aolsson's explanation makes sense. That word can mean "delivered," particularly of a message. But to my eye the word is "Besteht" (an "H" rather than two "LL"'s). As voylene very nicely points out, that word can mean "exist," but it can also mean "to have gone through" or "passed through." I hope for other responses, especially from Austria or Germany.

Here is an answer that AI produced when I did a google search through the Forum. Seems plausible. What do you think?

"The word 'besteht' on an Austrian stamp postmarked in Wien (Vienna) likely indicates that the recipient or intended address of the letter
does not exist anymore. This is related to the verb 'bestehen', which can mean 'to exist' or 'to be in existence'.

"Specifically, the phrase 'Besteht nicht mehr' means 'Does not exist anymore'. This would be an auxiliary marking applied by the postal service to indicate that the letter cannot be delivered because the addressee or the address is no longer valid. [see Vayolene's post above]

"In essence, the Wien 'besteht' postmark acts as a return-to-sender notice for mail that cannot be delivered due to the non-existence of the destination. This differs from 'bestehend' which means 'existing' or 'established.'"

I suggest that you search for "Wien Bestellt" at ebay and delcampe. There you will find several items there you can see how these postmarks normally were used. If you search for "Wien besteht" you probably will not find any postmarks. The label "Besteht nicht mehr" was most commonly used at the end of WWII when several houses were so destroyed by bombing that they did not exist anymore

Thanks for taking the time to help me out, aolsson. The stamp that I posted still looks as though it has an "H" in the word at the bottom, rather than "LL." Nevertheless, the evidence on both ebay and Delcampe does seem overwhelming, so I'll have to concede. That word must be "Bestellt."