Porcelein Maker Marks

[burgerhaus]

I was wondering if anyone could tell me why Reich porcelein items would have "Germany" on the reverse of an item and not "Deutscland"? In other words, if the maker is from Berlin, why would it be marked Berlin.Germany or Berlin.Deutschland or just plain Berlin and no coutry of origin? Any and all input from porcelein guys would be greatly appreciated. The use of an English word for the back of a German item just doesn't make sense to me. But what do I know!!

[Erich B.]

Germany marking

It has to do with international patents, registry and copyrights, I believe--even books printed in the III Reich would say 'Printed in Germany' in english. It started as an import/export law, where the country of origin must be indicated, from what I understand.
Erich

[VerKuilen Ager]

Just to clarify this a bit. "Printed in Germany" might appear as part of the typeset info on a book if the original intent was to sell it in the U.K., U.S., or other English-speaking country. You'll also find books that were not originally intended for distribution outside of Germany, but ended up being exported later on. These had a separate ink-stamped citation. Other items (porcelain, knives, etc.) were similarly marked "Germany" if they were intended for export.

[Erich B.]

Germany marking

That was probably the intent, but I've got German books up to 1944 that have 'Printed in Germany' as part of the typeset on the copyright page.
Erich

[VerKuilen Ager]

That was probably the intent, but I've got German books up to 1944 that have 'Printed in Germany' as part of the typeset on the copyright page.
Erich

I've noticed that too. In fact, most of the stamped add-ons disappeared after the U.S. market closed down. Possibly the bulk of the English citations were simply knee-jerk continuations of a basic indicia that helped guarantee worldwide copyright, though it's hard to imagine anything happening in Third Reich German publishing "because that's how we've always done it". The folks over at Dr. Goebbels ministry kept an eye on even the smallest detail like this, so there was some kind of method behind it. It's possible that it was something as simple as publishers covering their bases in case they decided to distribute an item in the Channel Islands.