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GERMANY

Germany presents several problems. Seals were issued and used both before and after the unification of Germany.
In the provisional listing below they have been grouped into State Seals, of which only Bavaria and Saarland
are so far definite although it has been suggested that they may also have been used in Württenberg, National Seals and Railway (Eisen Bahn) Seals.
A single seal from Danzig Free State has also been included here for convenience although that is debatable.
Seals on telegrams are fairly common so the dates when the different types were used are usually known and are given below.

There also exist a large number of round or oval seals, sometimes national but often bearing the name of a German city,
and the word telegraph and the thunderbolts which so often symbolised telegraphs in the 19^th Century.
They were extensively used on the postcards which were commonly used for inter-office communications.
They were not generally used as seals of the type this listing is concerned with although they were occasionally so used by accident
or due to a shortage of telegraph seals at that telegraph office just as telegraph stamps were occasionally used for postage in the UK.
Since they were essentially etiquettes used as service stamps on communications passing within the post and telegraph organisation, they are not listed here.
They have been catalogued elsewhere.

Except for the first, the seals used on folded telegrams were all rectangular since they came in strips or sheets.
There may be more to be added to the current list.

Updates. The above was written by Steve Hiscocks. He had added an additional Danzig Free State in the 'Addenda' that I have moved here.
I have also added the other colour images and tried to scale them to 300dpi based on the widths given by Steve Hiscocks.
New ones added and renumbered using 'RH' numbers (Revised Hiscocks) to avoid confusion. No pricing as yet.

Bavaria

#1 1862, 51.5mm (maximum extent)
This unusual embossed seal is on the back of a telegram envelope used at Augsburg (south-west Bavaria)


#2 1904-15, 31mm Some are blurred like the 1908 on the right.		#2a 1916, 31.5mm

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RH1	1	-	1862. Die-cut embossed.	-	-	-
RH2	2	1	1904-15 Perf. 11½. Cobalt blue.	-	-	-
RH2a		1a	Dull ultramarine.	-	-	-

Telegram forms I have with seals.

Form number		size (hxv mm)	dates seen	notes
D 55. Telegrammaufnahme- bezw. Ausfertigungsformular 1903.		258 x 143	1903	Double-sided
D 57. Telegrammaufnahme- bzw. Ausfertigungsformular 1907.		260 x 142	1908	Double-sided
D 57. Telegrammaufnahme- bzw. Ausfertigungsformular 1908.		259 x 142	1908	Double-sided
D 55. Telegrammaufnahme- bezw. Ausfertigungsformular 1910.		259 x 146	1910	Double-sided
D 57. 1914.	1914.	259 x 200	?	Single-sided
D 57. 1914.	1915.	261 x 197	1916	Single-sided

Danzig Free State

It is difficult to know where the Danzig Free State should be listed and, if I have trodden on any toes, I do apologise.
The city-state, perhaps analogous to Singapore today, was created by Napoleon from Prussian territory in 1807 and ended again in 1813 when it returned to Prussia.
It was then re-established in 1920 by the Treaty of Versailles under the League of Nations with a 90% German and 10% Polish population and
was reabsorbed by Nazi Germany on 2 September , 1939. Only the single seal is so far known.
The city is now in Poland and called Gdansk but this seal must have been issued while the city was essentially German.

Updates. The above was written by Steve Hiscocks. He had added an additional Danzig Free State in the 'Addenda' that I have moved here.


#1 RH1a, 1932, 35.9mm	#1 RH1b, 35.9mm

#2 RH2, 39.5mm

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RH1	1	1	1932. Imperf. Blue.	-	-	-
RH1a		-	1930-2 Imperf. Dark blue.	-	-	-
RH1b		-	Perf. Dark blue.	-	-	-
RH2	2	-	Imperf. Blue / White.	-	-	-

Telegram forms I have with seals.

Form number	size (hxv mm)	dates seen
(10. 28 – 1000 ßlücte) C 187 Danzig	223 x 203	1930
BEB Danzig – 10. 32 – 3000 ßlöct – Din A 5 C 187	209 x 147	1932

Saarland

#1 1932


#2 33.8mm. RH2, 1930, Perf. 11½	#2 33.9mm. RH2a 1953, Perf. 11½ x 10¾

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RH1	1	1	1932, Perf. Ultramarine.	-	-	-
RH2	2	2	1930, Perf. 11½, Dull bluish green on cream.	-	-	-
RH2a		2a	1953, Perf. 11½ x 10¾, Bright green on white.	-	-	-

Hiscocks adds the following note:

Note. I have seen a seal of the same design as #2 above but bright green rather than
dull bluish green and used in 1953 during the second French occupation.

Saxony

The arms on this seem to be for the Kingdom of Saxony (1806-1918).
This was a state within the Confederation of the Rhine until 1813, then within the German Confederation.
In 1918 it became a Free state. The back of this shows that it was used as a seal,
but whether these were used postally, on telegrams, or on both is unknown.

Württemberg

Officially-Opened Seal
This is not a telegram seal, though it could easily be mistaken for one.
This says "Officially Opened to determine the sender" which should not be needed on a telegram.
The deer and the embossed arms having 3 antlers on the left suggests Württemberg. The shield has 3 lions on the right.
I have seen one used in 1903.

Envelope flap cutout
The back of this has gum along the slanted edges suggesting that it has been cut from an envelope flap.
As such it can only be classed as an etiquette at best. There may however be similar genuine seals.

National Seals

Seals and telegrams often bear the current national coat of arms. They can be useful in determining the country and/or period.


1815-66 German Confederation.	1866-1871 North German Confederation.	1871-1918 German Empire.	1919-28	1928-35	1933-45 Nazi Germany.	1949-90 DDR (East Germany).	1990 onwards West & Unified Germany.
			Weimar Republic (1919-33).

1. Under the Kaiser.

"Kaiserlich Deutsche Telegraphie."


#K1 1877-82, 26mm	#K2 1884-1916, 28mm, Perf. 12½(top 2) and Perf. 11½	#K3 1915-19, 33.2mm (approximately 12mm between seals on a strip)

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RHK1	K1	#1	1877-82, Die-cut, Blue (shades)	-	-	-
RHK2	K2	#2	1884 - 1897, Perf. 12½. Dark blue (shades, thin translucent paper)	-	-	-
RHK3	(K2)	(#2)	1896 - 1916, Perf. 12½. Blue (shades)	-	-	-
RHK3a			Perf. 11½	-	-	-
RHK4	(K2)	(#2)	Perf. 12½ on all sides. Black	-	-	-
RHK4a			Perf. 11½	-	-	-
RHK5	(K2)	(#2)	1912 - 1915, Perf. 11 left & right, imperf. top & bottom. Blue	-	-	-
RHK6	K3	#3	1915 - 1919, Perf. 11 left & right, imperf. top & bottom. Blue (shades)	-	-	-
RHK6a			1917 - 1918, Very rough perfs. Light blue	-	-	-
RHK6b			Imperf. (Die cut ?). Dark blue	-	-	-

#K2 HK5 1912-15, Perf. 11 x imperf.

"Kaiserlich Deutsche Telegraphen Amt."


#K4 25.5mm	#K5 29mm (35 scallops)	#K6 28.3mm	#K7 28.4mm

"Militair."


#K8 29.1mm	#K9 32.2mm


#K10 29.7mm	#K11 31mm - small shield

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RHK7	K4	-	Imperf. Blue	-	-	-
RHK8	K5	-	Scalloped. Blue	-	-	-
RHK9	K6	-	Scalloped. Blue	-	-	-
RHK10	K7	-	Scalloped. Black	-	-	-
RHK11	K8	-	Scalloped. Red. Kings inspectorate of Military Telegraphy.	-	-	-
RHK12	K9	-	Scalloped. Red. Kings inspectorate of Military Telegraph School.	-	-	-
RHK13	K10	-	Scalloped. Blue. Telegraph apparatus workshop.	-	-	-
RHK14	K11	-	Scalloped. Blue. Telegraph apparatus workshop (small shield).	-	-	-

"Kaiserlich Deutsche Telegraphen Amt with specified place names - Etiquettes ? But see below.


#K12 - Hamburg	#K13 26.75mm - Berlin-1	#K14 28.5mm - Berlin-2	#K15 29.5mm - small shield - Berlin-3


#K16 29mm - Mainz	#K17 30.5mm - Oldenburg	#K18 29mm - Freiburg


#K19 28.9mm	#K20 28.8mm	#K21 31mm (P & T Affairs)	#K22 Leipzig Telegraph Inspector (see below)

#K23 37.4mm

The item on the left was listed by Hiscocks under South-West Africa.
It is inscribed "Deutsch-Südamerikanische Telegraphengesellschaft, A. G.", meaning
"German South American Telegraph Company". According to Atlantic-Cable.com, the company laid cables from
Monrovia, Liberia (West Africa) to Pernambuco, Brazil and later from Monrovia to
Lomé, Togo and Duala in the German Cameroons. However it is inscribed "CÖLN" or Cologne in Germany.
The company was more in the business of laying cables than delivering telegrams. I think it is more of an etiquette.
Though with those teeth it would have made a secure seal.

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RHK15	K12	-	Scalloped. Blue. Hamburg.	-	-	-
RHK16	K13	-	Scalloped. Blue. Berlin #2.	-	-	-
RHK17	K14	-	Scalloped. Blue. Head-Office Berlin.	-	-	-
RHK18	K15	-	Scalloped. Blue. Head-Office Berlin (small shield).	-	-	-
RHK19	K16	-	Scalloped. Blue. Mainz.	-	-	-
RHK20	K17	-	Scalloped. Blue. Oldenburg.	-	-	-
RHK21	K18	-	Scalloped. Blue. Freiburg.	-	-	-
RHK22	K19	-	Scalloped. Blue. Berlin.	-	-	-
RHK23	K20	-	Scalloped. Blue. Darmstadt.	-	-	-
RHK24	K21	-	Scalloped. Red. Post and Telegraph matters. Hamburg.	-	-	-
RHK25	K22	-	Scalloped. Blue. Telegraph Inspector. Leipzig.	-	-	-
RHK26	K23	-	Toothed. Grey. Südamerikanische - CÖLN.	-	-	-

Leipzig - from Christian Schmitz - front
This interesting item from Christian Schmitz shows a Telegraph Inspector "etiquette" being accepted as a frank in Leipzig on 9 May 1890.
If that was standard practice, then throws a whole new light on these.
Anyone have similar examples ?

2. After the Kaiser.

An unusual one.

#U1 1925, 32.8mm

This is unusual in that it has no writing on it or Coat of Arms.
If it had not been, apparently genuinely, used on a German telegram it would have been difficult to allocate.
This was on a telegram used at Krappitz, Oppeln (now Krapkowice, Opole, Poland) on 27 May 1925

#U2 25mm

Purported to be German and written in German.
It may however not be German

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RHU1	U1	-	1925, Very lightly pin-perfed. left & right, imperf. top & bottom	-	-	-
RHU2	U2	-	Date? Perf. 11½ black on white	-	-	-

#L1 1919-26, 33mm

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RHL1	L1	#4	1919 - 1926, Very lightly pin-perfed. left & right, imperf. top & bottom As Type #3 but Kaiserl (Royal) removed. Blue (shades)	-	-	-
RHL1a		#4	Imperf. (Die cut ?). Blue	-	-	-

Hiscocks adds the following note:

Note. Type #4 would seem to be #3 with the reference to the Kaiser deleted.
This version appeared in 1919-20 after World War I when the Kaiser was exiled.


#L2 1923-29, 29mm	#L3 1924-7, 31mm (the claws are distinctive)


#L4 1928? 31mm The head is different and better quality print due to surfaced paper.	#L5 1929 30mm Changed pattern on tail and junction with legs.

#L6 Date? 27.7mm
TELEGRAPHIE IM DEUTSCHEN REICHE. (Telegraphy in the German Empire)

#L7 1944-45, 21mm (across REICHSPOST)

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RHL2	L2	#5	1923 - 1929, imperf top, rough perf. 11 left & right, 22mm high. Dark blue	-	-	-
RHL2a			1924-8, (ineffective)pin-perf. 9~9½ left & right, 22mm high. Dark blue	-	-	-
RHL3	(L2)	(#5)	1923 - 1929, perf. 11 all sides, 23mm high. Dark blue	-	-	-
RHL4	L3	#6	1923-29 rough perf. left & right, 24.5mm high. Dark blue	-	-	-
RHL4a			1924-7 No perf left & right (torn from strip) , 24.5mm high. Dark blue	-	-	-
RHL5	L4	-	1928? perf between 11.3 Blue on white	-	-	-
RHL6	L5	-	1929 perf. 11½ Dark blue on white	-	-	-
RHL7	L6	-	Date? perf. 11½ Light blue on white	-	-	-
RHL8	L7	#7	1944-45, perf. 12½ top & bottom. Brown on buff	-	-	-

Hiscocks adds the following 2 notes and a general note (I have updated the references due to re-numbering):

Note 1. While Nos.HL2, HL3 and HL4 are very similar, there are several differences.
The easiest to spot is the difference in sizes which are most obvious in the vertical dimension.
There are in fact three different versions, the most common being HL2 above with a vertical
design dimension of 22mm supplied in strips, perhaps a roll, perforated between seals.
HL4 is of intermediate size, 30mm wide by 23mm high, very like HL2 but with the obvious
difference that this version was issued in sheets and perforated 13 on all sides.
HL3 is a bolder, more dramatic version of the same basic design with a vertical dimension
of 24.5mm. I have only seen two of these and both are cut or die-stamped as #L3 above
(30mm by 35mm). I have not knowingly seen HL3 or HL4 on a dated telegram although
I saw several dated telegrams bearing what I took to be #L2 on the internet before I was aware
that there were the three different types, so some of those may not have been #L2.
Help is needed here.

Note 2. I have a very badly damaged copy of #L7 sealing a telegram of 1944. I have also seen the top half
with the Nazi symbol removed so that the lower half could be used in 1946 after the war.

General Note. The dates given above derive from around 60 telegrams I have been able to examine.
They are not definitive or final.

#L8 1944, 39.2mm, Perf. 12.4
This one used in Eichstätt, Bavaria, 16 August 1944


#L9 1944, 39mm, Perf. 11 This one used in St. Anton am Arlberg, Austrian Tyrol, during German annexation 1938-45	#L10 1949 (size unknown). Used on a Deisenhofen, Munich. Deutsche Post Telegram.

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RHL9	L8	-	1944, perf. top & bottom. Black on white. Relying on postmark.	-	-	-
RHL10	L9	-	1944, perf. top & bottom. Black on white. Printed location.	-	-	-
RHL11	L10	-	1949, perf. top & bottom. Black on white. Relying on postmark.	-	-	-

3. After WWII


#N1 1947, 19.5mm. (across horn)	#N2 1948(January-June), 22.5mm. (across 'REICHSPOST')	#N3 1948(October), 20.7mm. (across circle)	#N4 1950, 20.5mm. (across circle)

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RHN1	N1	-	1947, perf. 10½. Red-brown on buff.	-	-	-
RHN1a		-	Date ? Perf. 9 x 9½	-	-	-
RHN2	N2	-	1948,Perf. Orange-brown on buff.	-	-	-
RHN3	N3	-	1948(Oct.) ,Perf. 10.8 Orange-brown on cream.	-	-	-
RHN4	N4	-	1950, rouletted 14. Red-brown on buff.	-	-	-
RHN5	N5	-	1948? ,Perf. Black on buff.	-	-	-

#N5 1948 ?
fragments (to scale) from an undated form,
stated to be 1948.

Allied-occupied Germany - from 1945

Französisch-Zone (French Zone)

#Z1 1949(Feb-April), 45.2mm (used in Budenheim)
Letters with serifs. Discontinuous inner frame lines.


#Z1 1949(April), 44.8mm (used in Loerrach and Schönau im Schwarzwald) Sans-serif lettering. Continuous horizontal inner frame lines,	#Z2 1950?(May) 48.5mm (black frame) (used in Neuhemsbach) Discontinuous inner frame lines.

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RHZ1	Z1	-	1949 (Feb-April), Rouletted. 10 x Imperf. Black on orange-yellow.	-	-	-
RHZ2	Z2	-	1949 (April), Imperf. x Perf. 10¾ . Black and yellow on buff.	-	-	-
RHZ3	Z3	-	1950? (May) Imperf. x Perf. Grey and yellow on white.	-	-	-

Rohrpost

There also exist at least two different seals used on telegrams sent by 'rohrpost', a pneumatic system for moving
letters and telegrams rapidly around Berlin and five other German cities from the 19^th century into the 1940s.
Unfortunately I do not have good illustrations of these but have seen very poor scans of them on the internet.
#8 below looks very like the seal illustrated for 1947 although it was actually taken from a poorly scanned pneumatic letter on the internet,
while #9 was actually on a telegram again used in 1947.

Updates. The above was written by Steve Hiscocks. I have not yet seen any of these.


#R1 1947	#R2 1931-47

#R3 1948?

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RHR1	R1	#8	1947, perf. Black on red.	-	-	-
RHR2	R2	#9	1931-47, perf. Black on red.	-	-	-
RHR3	R3	-	1948?, perf. Black on red.	-	-	-

Railway Telegraph Seals


#E1 1892, 29.1mm (38 scallops, white edging) Some damage to tail and star.	#E2 29.3mm (32 scallops, blue edging) Hyphen between Eisenbahn and Telegraphie.


#E3 28mm	#E4 28mm


#E5 27mm	#E6 23mm

Note The seal previously listed as #E7 has been moved to Southwest Africa.
#E5 is written in German, but the crown and winged-wheel are very reminiscent of Danish design.
It was perhaps used in Schleswig-Holstein.

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RHE1	E1	-	Scalloped. Blue.	-	-	-
RHE2	E2	-	Scalloped. Blue.	-	-	-
RHE3	E3	#8	Perf. 11½. Blue	-	-	-
RHE4	E4	#9	Perf. 11½. Blue	-	-	-
RHE5	E5	#10	Perf. 10½. Blue (shades)	-	-	-
RHE6	E6	#11	Perf. 10½. Blue	-	-	-

Rohrpost cover with seal - 1892
Front of 1892 Rohrpost cover. The telegram was transmitted to Berlin, who forwarded to the hotel by Rohrpost.

Rear of 1892 Rohrpost cover showing seal E1.

Military Intelligence.

Inscribed 'Heeres-Nachrichtendienst'
These were applied to packets with intelligence reports.
I assume these were used on telegrams because of the copious 'thunderbolts' in the design.


#M1 1912? 29.3mm	*#M2 1944? 29mm	#M3 1944 29mm

'INSELPOST' (Island Post) overprints were intended for use of the German military in the Greek Islands in 1944.
They were applied in Vukovar, Croatia, and are more usually found on 'package stamps and airmail labels'.


#M4 1944? 29.2mm	#M5 1944? 29.2mm	#M6 1945? 29.5mm

The eagle on M1 is similar to that in types #5 and #6 above.
The small thunderbolts closest to the eagle differ between M4 and M6.
According to Yakov Lurye who supplied the image for M5, "A 1977 article in GPSY journal classifies these overprints as a bogus issue".
The GPS here refers to the German Philatelic Society of the USA.

RH #	Type.	was	Description	Mint	Used	On telegram
RHM1	M1	-	1912? Perf. 11 at sides. Green.	-	-	-
*RHM2	M2	-	1944? Perf. 12½ at sides. Green.	-	-	-
RHM2a		-	1938 ? Perf. 11 at sides. Green.	-	-	-
RHM3	M3	-	1944 As M2, INSELPOST (R).	-	-	-
**RHM4	M4	-	1944? Perf. 12½ at sides. Green.	-	-	-
RHM5	M5	-	1944 As M4, INSELPOST (B).	-	-	-
RHM6	M6	-	1945? Rouletted 10 at sides. Green.	-	-	-

* There is the remains of a roll of these (697 seals) for 5$US each + shipping ($2)
and quantity discounts available at http://RonsThings.com
Also available at axishistory.com.

** A roll of about 1000 of these were sold recently for $80 at www.leonardauction.com.

Telegram forms I have seen

Form number	notes / CoA	size (hxv mm)	dates seen
C. 187.	green with flap, no CoA	243 x 204	1877
C. 187.	Eagle, crown & ribbons	242 x 203	1880
C. 187.	Eagle, crown & ribbons	245 x ~200	1892
C. 187.	Eagle, crown & ribbons	237 x 196	1894
C. 187.	Eagle, crown & ribbons	239 x 198	1909
C. 187.	Eagle, crown & ribbons	245 x 202	1915-19
C. 187.	Eagle CoA	?	1921
C. 187.	Eagle CoA	215 x 194	1924
C. 187	Eagle CoA	217 x 191	1925
O. 187.	C changed to O - Eagle CoA	214 x 194	1926
C 187.	Deutsche Reichstelegraph Adverts on back.	215 x 193	Jan. 1926
C 187 (3.25)	Deutsche Reichstelegraph Adverts on back.	214 x 194	Aug. 1926
C 187 4 (12. 25)	Deutsche Reichstelegraph	208 x 180	Aug. 1928
H T A Nr. 83 4 (12. 27)	Deutsche Reichstelegraph	210 x 182	Sept. 1928
C. 187.	Eagle CoA	215 x 194	1928
(V. 28) C 187	Deutsche Reichstelegraph (small)	207 x 198+	1929
1 StdW C 187 Din A 5	Deutsche Reichspost	207 x 149	1943
2 (4.41) C 187 VI. 2 k 22 Din A 5	Deutsche Reichspost	211 x 145	1943
3 7. 43 270000 X C 187 Din A 5, (Kl. 29)	Deutsche Reichspost	209 x 148	1943?
E. Z. 6. 43 X C 187 Din A 5, (Kl. 29)	Deutsche Reichspost	?	Jan.1944
StdW X C 187 Din A 5	Deutsche Reichspost	207 x 148	Apr & Aug 1944
E. Z. 5. 44 X C 187 Din A 5, (Kl. 29)	Deutsche Reichspost	208 x 148	Nov.1944
4(12. 42) Δ C 187 a Din A 5	Deutsche Reichspost	208 x 148	Jan.1945
E. Z. 6. 42 X C 187 Din A 5 (Kl. 29)	Deutsche Reichspost	207 x 148	Mar.1947
E. Z. 6. 43 X C 187 Din A 5 (Kl. 29)	Deutsche Reichspost	208 x 148	Jan.1944
TVZ. Erfurt 022 2. 46. 50 000 X C 187 Din A 5, (Kl. 29)	Deutsche Post	208 x 148	1947
15 3000 Bk je 100 Bl 3.47 319 X C 187 Din A 5, (Kl. 29)	Deutsche Post	208 x 99	1947
15 1038700 Bk je 100 Bl 4.47 319 X C 187 Din A 5, (Kl. 29)	Deutsche Post	209 x 96	?
D 05 Landesdruckerei Sachsen 15000 Bk je 100 Bl 1247 < C 187 > ? ? missing ? ?	Deutsche Post	212 x 98	?
3 100 000 11. 47/83 X C 187 Din A 5, (Kl. 29)	Deutsche Post	209 x 147	June 1948
Heß, Braunschweig. 7. 46. 200 000. C 187	Deutsche Post	204 x 149	1948
X C 187 Din A 5 Druck Chr. Faaß, Karlsruhe	Deutsche Reichspost	207 x 145	Oct. 1948
50 000. 1. 48. S†R. X C 187 Din A 5 (Kl. 29)	Deutsche Post	209 x 149	April 1949
Waldkirch C 187 Din A 5 (Kl. 29)	Deutsche Post	208 x 147	Feb-Apr 1949
10 000. 747. Waldkirch C 187a Din A 5	Deutsche Post	209 x 148	1950?
Schlütersche CDH 81 Hannover, 100 000, 4. 48, 12 X C 187 Din A 5, (Kl. 29) (IV 44)	Deutsche Post	209 x 148	1950
C. W. SCHIEM. Ffm.. 8000, BI. ? 100. 6. 49. C 187 Din A 5 (Kl. 29(	Deutsche Post	209 x 145	1950
C 187 Din A 5 (Kl. 29)	Deutsche Post	210 x 145	1950

The first (1887) type here is green and has a flap for the address and seal. I have two 1877 examples,
one had the seal on the flap, the other between the two sides, just touching the flap (that was mostly covered by the address). No Coat of Arms (CoA).
Headed with "Telegraphie des Deutschen Reiches." in fraktur and is hard to read.

The 1880 to 1919(at least) types are in the normal tan colour without flap, but still written in fraktur.
They are also headed "Telegraphie des Deutschen Reiches" but with a central Eagle with crown and ribbons as CoA.

The 1924 one has changed the CoA to an Eagle without crown or ribbons.
The 1926 one with adverts has changed to "Deutscher Reichstelegraph" and removed the Eagle CoA.
The 1928 ones on this list appear to be old stock, as per the 1924 type.
The 1943? and the April 1944 one has "Deutsche Reichspost" in modern, easy to read script.
The 1947 and later ones have "Deutsche Post" in modern, easy to read script.

Some imprints start with logos:

1 starts with Gothic StdW initials.

2 starts with a small black oval with a white something ? inside.

3 starts with a CCBJ monogram.

4 starts with a small black disk with a white eagle inside.

Glückwunsch Telegramms (Congratulations Telegrams)

Congratulations Telegram
These appear to have been made by a company without connection to the Telegraph Authorities.
The cards are decorative, have a spoof cancellation and are folded and sealed with the item below.
They are presumably either hand delivered or put in an envelope and mailed.

Spoof seal
The card was undated, but had a pre-filled year of '19' in 2 places.
To add realism, neither was completed.

If anyone can provide scans to help with this, I am happy to give appropriate credit.

GERMANY

Bavaria

Telegram forms I have with seals.

Danzig Free State

Telegram forms I have with seals.

Saarland

Saxony

Württemberg

National Seals

Allied-occupied Germany - from 1945

Französisch-Zone (French Zone)

Rohrpost

Military Intelligence.

Telegram forms I have seen

Glückwunsch Telegramms (Congratulations Telegrams)

Comments, criticisms, information or suggestions are always welcome.

Please include the word 'Precancels' in the subject.