Antwort auf: LZ127 in Sevilla 1930

Dear Alfred und Klaus,

Thank you for keeping me the loop. It would have been impossible for me to find out about a number of issues with respect to SAF 1930 without the knowledge that you represent. That will, of course be ackowledged in my article, that is running out of hand by now but will be finished shortly … When complete, you will both have to reveal your full names to me for the proper reference.

It becomes more and more clear to me that real ‘Bedarfsstücke’ are very rare indeed. In by far the most cases, at least one stamp dealer or intermediary is involved, if not two or three. In that sense, Alfred’s letter from Liechtenstein to Madre Estefania in Florencia (Col) is a real gem, for several reasons of course. Indeed, how true: “… gibt es eigentlich nichts, was es nicht gibt …”. Purists, I guess, would be only interested in such pieces, sent between to ‘normal’ people, maybe not even stamp collectors themselves (what do we know about the secret passions of Estefania?).

With respect to dr. Oscar Eiser: instead of working in his chemical lab, he was obviously making an extra peseta by sticking stamps on Frischer’s cards over there in Madrid. I have a similar card as the one shown by Klaus. Yours has been cancelled on 30th May T(arde), in the afternoon between 12:00 and 20:00 (Spanish afternoons run until later than ours; they eat at 22:00). Mine has been canceled on 31st May N(oche), which I guess was the next day after 20:00. OsCar (nicht: OsKar) must have produced quite a few of these, then. He is consistent in putting the five stamps of the airmail series from high to low face value. In my article I suggest that when fixing them to my card (see Anhänge) he got so tired and bored that he could not put them in a straight line anymore (maybe the lights had gone out and he was using a candle). Or would he have followed the angle of the red cancel on the top left of the card?

The Havanna discussion takes on the level of a real detective story; fascinating. Great is the analogy with mail from Nicaragua, which I have not seen so far: I guess it must be pretty rare. Philately is in need of one Inspector Derrick, a Kommissar Dieter Leder, or maybe one Auguste Poirot, who could have been on board of the LZ127 as well, and solve a murder mystery like he did on the Orient express and the Nile in the same old days … There has not been such a drama on board of the Luftschiff I guess, but – indeed – I was highly intrigued by Alfred’s card sent by ms. Drummond that I found on the Lieblingsbelege thread, and the love story connected to it. On this, I have an obvious confession to make, that will follow in the contribution I hope to make later on.

With all my best wishes,

Dik