Preview of Stamps Catalogue: VOLUME 1

HAMBURG (Germany), 1866 issue

Return To Catalogue - Hamburg 1859 issue - Hamburg 1864 issue - Hamburg, cancels - Hamburg, forgeries of the 1859 issue - Miscellaneous - Private issues (Boten issues), part 1 - Private issues (Boten issues), part 2 - Private issues (Boten issues), part 3 - Other private issues

Currency: 1 Hamburg Mark = 16 Schilling

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One of the German States. A Free City of the Hansa in the north of Germany. Cuxhaven also belonged to Hamburg. It issued stamps from 1859 to 1867. Afterwards it used the stamps of the North German Confederation (from 1st of January 1868 onwards). There also exist private issues for Hamburg and so-called Boten (messenger) issues. Postoffices of Thurn and Taxis, Prussia, Denmark, Sweden/Norway, Hannover and Mecklenburg existed in the city of Hamburg. The majority of foreign letters were send by the Thurn and Taxis post office.

1866 As 1859 issue but design changed, rouletted, no watermark

Certified genuine stamp.

(Probably genuine stamps)

  1 1/4 Schilling violet
  1 1/2 Schilling red

Value of the stamps
vc = very common c = common * = not so common ** = uncommon		*** = very uncommon R = rare RR = very rare RRR = extremely rare
Value	Unused	Used	Remarks
1 1/4 s	R	R	Printed in sheets of 100 stamps (10 rows of 10).
1 1/2 s	***	RR	Printed in sheets of 100 stamps (10 rows of 10).

These stamps were manufactured by the Prussian State Printing Office in Berlin.

Reprints of these two stamps exist:
The genuine 1 1/4 Sch stamps have a small white circle in the stars (or flowers? this is filled up in the reprints). The triangles in the corners are different from the genuine 1 1/4 Sch stamp (they were attached using a postal stationery as I understand it); the thickness of the inner two lines is different. There are also differences in the "g" of "Schilling" in the reprints compared to the original stamps, in the genuine stamps there is a small line going trough the upper open part of this letter which is missing in the reprint.
The 1 1/2 Sch reprints are printed on much thicker paper. There are again differences in the "g" of "Schilling" in the reprints compared to the original stamps, in this case however, there is a line going halfway through the upper part of the "g", but this line is not present in the genuine stamp.
Source: 'The Forged Stamps of all Countries' by J.Dorn. Examples of what I think are reprints:

1 1/4 s violet
(Probably reprints, in the lower left part of the 1 1/4 stamp, the attached triangle can be seen)

Modern reprints also exist (made by Gehringer in Kaiserslautern).

Forgery of the 1 1/2 Sch value. The first row of bricks above the word "POSTMARKE" has a brick just above the "O" of this word. In the genuine stamp this letter comes just below two bricks. The lettering and design is also slightly different.

Forgery, lettering different. For example the "P" of "POSTMARKE" almost touches the star in front of it.

Gehringer 'reprints' made in 1978.

Gehringer reprints.

A special local stamp for Hamburg was issued by the North German Federation (due to the differency in currency used in Hamburg)

Private reprints

Goldner reprints

The forger Julius Goldner made enormous quantities of private reprints of Hamburg. These reprints do not have any watermark.

Mophila reprints

The above minisheet of 1 1/4 Sch stamps was printed for the Mophila Exhibition in 1931. It has a watermark like pattern in the paper. The paper below the stamps is more yellowish and on the backside traces of threads can be seen. The stamps are rouletted.

Zoom-in of such a reprint

Gehringer reprints

In 1978, the printer Gehringer of Kaiserslautern made reprints of the 1 1/4 Sch and 1 1/2 Sch stamps. Enormous quantities must have been printed, the quality is very good (the embossing on the backside of the stamp can clearly be seen).

(Reprint consisting of a block of four 1 1/4 Sch stamps, for the "WELTPOSTKONGRESS" in Hamburg, I've also seen these sheets without the Weltpostkongress text, note there is watermark alike pattern in the whole sheet)

Gehringer mini sheet reprint containing four 1 1/2 Sch stamp for "NAPOSTA 85" and "MOPHILA 85"

A whole sheet of Gehringer reprints containing 25 stamps of the 1 1/2 Sch value, inscription 'Hamburg Nr. 21 - Neudruck 1978'

Similar sheets exist with the value 1 1/4 Sch (also 25 stamps).