VOL . XXVII, NUMBER 2MARCH 2001

by Michael Pete r

Following the success of the "Graf' in making regular summer flights to Brazil, Dr . Eckener wasanxious to extend the Zeppelin operation to Argentina . Thus, in July 1934, the "Graf' made itsone and only visit to a South American country outside Brazil .

Such a decision caused a lot of excitement in Buenos Aires . For days prior to the arrivalof the "Graf', the newspaper "La Prensa" carried endless reports and descriptions of th epreparations that were being performed in anticipation of the great event .

A commercial cover addressed to Buenos Aires . The reverse bears an arrival cancel of June 28, 1934 .The special flight cachet for this flight attempts to duplicate the Palais del Congress building in Bueno s

Aires. The letter (20 grams) is properly franked for the fourth weight unit to Argentina . Rate breakdown :.30 Rappen (base international rate) + 2 .00 SF. per 5 grams times 4 (airmail surcharge) = 8 .30 SF .

An early decision was to select the Campo de Mayo (Field of May), rather than the airfiel d"El Palomar" for the landing, because the latter was not large enough to accommodate the larg enumber of spectators that were expected to attend .

The Army (represented by the 8th Infantry, 2nd Field artillery, 10th Cavalry and the 2nd

Horse Artillery) was in charge of organizing and controlling the public, in addition to maintainin glaw and order . A small body of soldiers was placed at the disposal of the Syndicato Condor i norder to assist passengers and special guests on and off the Zeppelin . Entrance to the Field wasfree, but the public was not allowed access to the "Graf Zeppelin" itself, being kept a distance o fbetween 300 and 400 meters away. No smoking was allowed in the

(continued on page 10)

American HelvetiaPhilatelic Society

THE 1934 ARGENTINIAN FLIGHT OF THE GRAF ZEPPELIN

Flights 370-37 5

Based on excerpts and articles

ContentsThe 1934 Argentinian Flight of the Gra f

Zeppelin 1President's Message 2Election Report 3A Complete Sauter Postal Card 4AHPS Get-together at WESTPEX 5AHPS Auction 120 6Articles in Other Journals 1 1Swiss Philatelic Literature, Part II 12A Winning Swiss Poster Stamp 15AHPS Treasurer's Report for 2000 16

Copyright 2000, The American Helvetia Philatelic Society (AHPS) .TELL (ISSN 1042-2072) is the official journal of the AmericanHelvetia Philatelic Society, affiliate #52 of the American Philateli cSociety and a member of the Union of Swiss Philatelic Societies .TELL is published bimonthly (Jan/Mar/May/Jul/Sep/Nov) .

Opinions expressed in this journal are those of the authors an dare not necessarily endorsed by AHPS or the Editor .

Letters and articles on Swiss, Liechtenstein, UN Geneva an drelated philately are welcome and should be sent to the Editor .Whenever possible, submit material on 3 .5" PC compute rdiskettes or by e-mail in plain text or as a Microsoft Wor dattachment . Illustrations are encouraged and may be submitte das full size photocopies ; or, we can copy/scan your original s(please contact the Editor before sending actual stamps, covers,etc .) . Please include your name, address and telephone number .

Subscriptions for 2000 include AHPS dues : North America, $20 ;by first class mail, $25 ; overseas air delivery, $30 . Requestmembership applications from the Secretary . Change-of-Address should be sent to the Secretary .

PRESIDENT'S MESSAG E

by David E. Durham

By a very slim margin (?) - see Dick Hall' sofficial tally report - yours truly has reachedthe pinnacle of AHPS political life by beingelected as your President - a two year office,unless I am impeached . I am nervous aboutthis responsibility, because although I amhighly committed to Swiss philately, I am fardown the line in my knowledge of how todistinguish this and that color, how t odecipher the errors on classic issues, an dnever have I put together an exhibit . . .yet .However, I am devoted to AHPS, and I love towork with people, and therefore I accept thisawesome challenge and look forward to servingyou and our Society as best I can . And now, torecite for you my "platform" which to date onl ymy dog has heard .

1 . Our award winning periodical, TELL,is the key to our Society . I am most gratefu lfor George's continued efforts with the TELL . Ijoin him in urging each member to conside rwhat sort of article carrying new information, anovel perspective, or

(continued on page 3)

American Helvetia Philatelic Society

Officers 2001-2002

ELECTED OFFICERS

APPOINTED OFFICERS

President

TELL EditorDavid E. Durham

George Strubl e149 Ontario St.

210 18th St . NEHoneoye Falls, NY 14472-1139

Salem, OR 97301-431 6Home: 716-624-5575

Home: 503-364-3929E-mail : dedur@juno .com

E-mail :gstruble@willamette .edu

Past PresidentJames A. Anderson

TELL Associate Editor14463 E. Wagontrail Pl .

Steven S . WestonAurora, CO 80015

P .O . Box 86 8Home: 303-617-7836

Del Mar CA 92014-086 8jamesaanderson@home .com

760-752-781 2

Vice-President

Circuit Sales ManagerWilliam R . Lucas

Emil L . Toble r8912 Pinnacle Peak Rd .,

P .O . Box 2 6PM Box 559

Bradford RI 02808Scottsdale, AZ 85255

Home: 401-377-2238Home: 480-342-9739E-mail : wlucas3@home .corn

Auction Manage rGordon Trotter

Secretary & Librarian

10626 Fable RowRichard T . Hall

Columbia, MD 2104 4P.O. Box 15053

Phone : 410-730-7936Asheville, NC 28813

Fax: 410-740-7215Home phone : 828-681-0581

E-mail : trotters@erols.comE-mail : rtravis@alum .mit .edu

Publicity Chairma nAwards ChairmanHarlan F . StoneP .O . Box 77033 4Woodside NY 1137 7Home: 718-478-2374E-mail : hfstone@rcn .com

Regional Director Wes tDonn LueckP. O . Box 1158 2Phoenix, AZ 8506 1Home : 602-841-1322

Regional Director EastHelen Galatan-Ston eP .O . Box 77033 4Woodside NY 1137 7Home: 718-478-2374E-mail : hfstone@rcn .com

Plan to attend/exhibit at theseAHPS Conventions and shows :

SESCAL October 5-7, 200 1Los Angeles, CA

CHICAGOPEX November 2002

BALPEX September 200 3Baltimore, MD

ROMPEX May 2004Denver, Colorado

Commercial advertising copy and rate inquiries should be sentto the Editor . Advertising deadlines are seven weeks prior topublication date: Jan. 10, Mar. 12, May 12, July 13, Sep . 12 ,Nov . 13 .

Printed by Kettle Moraine Printing, West Bend WI 53095 .

TreasurerFrank Youn g426 N Bellinger St .Herkimer, NY 13350Home: 315-867-5705

Regional Director CentralRalph Soderberg, M .D .P. O . Box 3606 7Grosse Pointe Woods, MI 4823 6Home: 313-885-4125

Slide ChairmanRichard W. BlaneyPO Box 1100Easton MA 02334-110 0508-238-313 4

REPRESENTATIVESUnion of Swiss Philateli cSocieties RepresentativeRalph Soderber gP.O. Box 36067Grosse Pointe Woods, MI 4823 (Home: 313-885-4125

American Philatelic SocietyCharles J . LaBlond e2940 Underwood Point # 5Colorado Springs, CO 8092 0719-593-5974E-mail :chuck .lablonde@smawins .com

Liechtenstein Study Grou pChm: Ralph R. Schneide rP .O . Box 2304 9Belleville IL 62223

2 TELL

March 2001

Election Report

The official results of the AHPS election for officers are :

President David Durham 224 votes

Vice President William Lucas 222 votes

Secretary Richard Hall 225 votes

Treasurer Frank Young 223 votes

Regional Director West Donn Lueck 213 votes

Regional Director Central Ralph Soderberg 214 votes

Regional Director East Helen Gallatan-Stone 214 votes

In addition, there were write-in votes for two people, one vote each for treasurer and regiona ldirector central .

These officers serve from January 2001 to December 2002 . We thank them for thei rwillingness to serve AHPS for these two years, and wish them a satisfying experience . We thankour past president, Jim Anderson for his two years as president .

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE(continued from page 2) human interest, youmight write for us . Only by your efforts asauthors and a broadening of the number ofwriters can we sustain and expand the qualityof our periodical . I am most appreciative(more than words could express) of those wh ohave written for us so faithfully .

2. Our Annual Meeting this year will beat SESCAL, taking place October 5 to 7, 2001 ,at the Windham Los Angeles Airport Hotel . Iexpect us to have a number of exhibits, anafternoon of lectures and conversation, adelightful evening dinner on the town (always amost pleasant event!), and opportunities t oshare in numerous ways . More informationwill be forthcoming on this . Get SESCAL onyour calendar now! !

3. We need a WEB SITE . Dick Hall andhis son are beginning work on this, andGordon Trotter and Harlan Stone will becooperating with them to develop a web site fo rAHPS . It is still in the dream stage, but whenit reaches fruition this year, it will carry (a )general information about AHPS, (b) th eauction material, (c) details regarding th eTELL, membership information, sales circuits ,slide shows, the annual meeting, regionalmeetings, and the like . What do you want t osee on the web site? Have some ideas for it ?Let us know! I am excited about thi sdevelopment .

4. I would like to continue JimAnderson's attempt to reach out to YOUTH .We shall have packets of Swiss stamps readyto hand out at our table at SESCAL, but weare looking for additional ways we can interestyoung(er) people in Swiss philately. And ingeneral, I would like to see us identify an denlist additional members for AHPS - person sof any age .

5. Along the line of broadeningmembership, I would like to see, where it i sappropriate, the raising up of ASSISTANTS fo rthe various appointed responsibilities in ou rSociety. After twenty-two years of faithfu lservice, our longest running officer, FrankYoung our Treasurer, is retiring at the end ofthis year. Our gratitude will be expressed in alater issue of TELL, but I lift up as a concernmy interest in broadening our leadership base :I would like for us to find more people willingto take responsibilities in our Society .

I am sure that more plans will developas this year unfolds . I would be delighted t ohear from members of our Society regardin gideas for what AHPS could do to assistmembers in their hobby . And if one of theabove "planks" touches you, please volunteerto help us out .

Be sure to note the AHPS get-together atWESTPEX in April . See page 5 for moredetails. We are delighted at this initiative !

March 2001

3 TELL

A Complete Sauter Postal Cardby Harlan F. Stone

When the Swiss Postal Department issued new 5- and 10-centime postal cards in May 1875, itproduced a printed-to-private-order 5c card for "A . Sauter & Cie in Zürich," using the sam ebrown color to imprint the 5c stamp, card text and personalized text for the company, believe dto be a coal or grain merchant .

The description of this private variety of the No. 10 card, as listed in the 1984 ZumsteinPostal Stationery Catalog, includes a width of 160 millimeters and a height varying from 90 t o110 mm. These reported dimensions have been based on only used examples .

Figure 1 . Front of complete Sauter card

During NABA 2000, the Swiss national stamp exhibition in St . Gallen last June I foun dan even wider unused card (Figure 1) at one of the dealer's stands . Georges Schild, president ofthe Swiss Postal Stationery Collectors Society, happened to pass by at that moment andimmediately recognized the significance of my purchase . The back of the card (Figure 2) turn sout to be the key side.

Figure 2 . Back of Complete Sauter Card

Whenever Sauter shipped sacks of coal or grain to a customer, the company also sent it scustomer the right portion of the back, measuring 160 mm . wide, as an invoice and receipt . Onthis invoice/receipt it recorded the number of shipped sacks the customer needed to retur nempty, plus the number of other sacks still due back from any earlier delivery .

At the time of the shipment Sauter also retained the left portion of the card, measuring 7 2mm. wise, as its record of the fulfilled order . This coupon, showing the account balance ,noted the full number of empty sacks the customer owed .

4 TELL

March 2001

The gutter between the two parts, showing the company's name, measures 8 mm . ,making a total width of 240 mm . My used examples of the Sauter cards show that sometimespart or all of this gutter ended up as part of the mailed receipt, depending on how the company' sclerk cut the card into its two parts .

The back of the complete unused card (Figure 2) is handstamped ungultig (invalid) in bluein six places, indicating that it is a sample or specimen .

My used examples also seem to explain the variation in the height of the Sauter cards .These cards appear to have been printed in vertical strips with brown horizontal lines dividin gthem. These lines are 87 mm. apart. However, the bottom card in the vertical strip has a blanksheet margin, adding another 23 mm . to its height, making a total of 110 mm. There are notraces of brown dividing lines at the ends of these used cards, indicating an absence of othe rvertical rows in the sheet .

Mr. Schild has already reported the 240 mm . wide unused Sauter card in DerGanzsachensammler, the journal of the Swiss Postal Stationery Collectors Society (No . 67 ,September 2000, page 1280) . In addition, he has listed this complete card, including it sattached coupon, as a mint variety in the updated catalog he is preparing for publication b yZumstein next June.

AHPS Get-together atWESTPEX

Space has been reserved for an AHPS programthis year at WESTPEX. WESTPEX will be hel dFriday 27 April through Sunday 29 April at th eCathedral Hill Hotel, 1101 Van Ness Avenue ,San Francisco, CA 94109; phone 415-776 -8200 .

The AHPS get-together will be heldSaturday, 28 April 2001 from 12 :00 Noon to1 :30 PM in one of the WESTPEX meetin grooms. The program will be in two parts a sfollows :

1. Meeting and program on Swiss Philately2. Coordination of effort to create a Norther n

California chapter of AHP S

Specific times for part 1 and part 2 ofthe get-together have not yet been finalized .

The intent is to have a substantiveprogram with one speaker already identifie dwilling to give a talk; a tentative agenda hasbeen established for the meeting . Final detail swere not ready for the March TELL . However ,a separate mailing will be made to al lCalifornia and Nevada members about 1month before the show. Others requesting wil lalso be advised ; just send an e-mail or letterrequesting to be included .

AHPS principal point of contact for thi sget-together is

Garvin Lohman1541 Sacramento Street, # 3San Francisco, CA 9410 9Phone: (415) 776-030 6e-mail : garloh@earthlink .net

Secondary point of contact is

Dale EggenPO Box 70577Sunnyvale, CA 94086-057 7e-mail : D_Eggen@Juno .com

Further specific information about WESTPEXon the web can be found a t

http : / /www.westpex.com

If there is sufficient interest, the intentis to try and have a second get-together inconjunction with SUNPEX in Sunnyvale, C Athe 10th and 11th of November . The presentintent is that a part of this get-together wouldinclude a tour of the Western Philatelic Librar yin Sunnyvale with a special emphasis on Swis sphilatelic resources it holds .

During WESTPEX, contact with Garvinand Dale can be made through the WESTPE Xregistration/information desk at the top of th estairs on the mezzanine level .

If anyone has interest in a NorthernCalifornia chapter of AHPS, please do not waituntil WESTPEX to contact Garvin or Dale .They would love to hear your ideas an dinterests for such a chapter .

March 2001

5 TELL

AHPS Auction 12 0

I am happy to report that the donation material sold in auction 119 ; as a result, the society' s

treasury is a bit fatter. Thank you all for your bids . This time we have an outstanding posta lhistory section, in addition to another fine selection of classic and middle period stamps . Here' shoping you'll have fun with this sale . And remember our watchwords : bid early, high and often !

The first catalog number in the description is Zumstein, followed by Scott (Sc ) as

appropriate. Catalog value is taken from Zumstein 2000 Specialized Volumes 1 and 2, and

converted to dollars at the rate SFr . 1 = US$ 0 .60 .

Closing date for bids in this auction is March 25, 2001 . Please send bids to GordonTrotter by one of the following means ; e-mail bids are preferred and will be acknowledged . Mail :10626 Fable Row, Columbia, MD 21044. FAX: 410-740-7215 . E-mail : trotters @ erols .com .

Most of the lots are illustrated on the Internet -- go to http :/ /www.erols .com/trotters . If

you have any difficulty accessing the web site, e-mail me for assistance .

The deadline for submitting lots for auction 121 is May15, 2001 .

Lot#

Description Cat .Val .

$

Min.Bid $

1 15 I (Sc 5) T10, 10/ 12 of frame, black PD cancel, sealed tear,F appearance, Zeigler certificate

1110 200

2 15 I .2 .09 (Sc 5v) red spot in cross, stamped Abt, 2+ margins Fused

1170 35 0

3 16 II (Sc 8) T14 E LO 4 margins, light blue cancel, Zeigle rcertificate

102 45

4 16 II (Sc 8) T22 D RU 4 wide margins, almost 4 cut lines, gril lcancel

102 60

5 16 II (Sc 8) T29 E LU 3 wide margins, grill cancel, signe dKimmel

102 45

6 16 II (Sc 8) T31 E LU 4 wide margins, 3 cut lines 102 55

7 17 II .2 .16 (Sc 10) 3 large margins, rare red double ring Base lcancel, minor crease, Zeigler certificate

225+ 175

8 18 (Sc 11) 3+ margins (2 large), grill cancel, signed Richter 555 200

9 18 (Sc 11) type 2 stamped Abt, 3 margins F used 555 166

10 19 (Sc 13) 4 narrow margins, just touches left, F used 930 279

11 20e (Sc 12) dull red, used 4 margins (2 wide), signed Kimmel 114 50

12 Strubel PROOF perforated as trial, 10 Rp orange NG VF -pretty!

50

13 23Aa used F-VF, 1St Munich print, 3 margins, cut in BL, grillcancel, Trussel certificate

600 200

14 24Aa used VF, 1st Munich print, 3 margins (wide at bottom) ,grill cancel, Rellstab certificate

450 240

15 26A (Sc 19) used VF 3 margins, grill cancel, Trussel certificate 228 96

16 22B.2 .05 (Sc 20v) white dot in shield, used, 3+ margins 144 47

17 24B .2 .04 (Sc 22) very thick paper, used, 4 margins, wide attop

144 47

18 23C (Sc 27) * VF 4 large margins 216 5 0

19 23C.2 .02 (Sc 27v) split frame line, used, 3 margins 400 10 8

20 23Cb .2 .01 (Sc 27v) split frame line, 2 margins, on piece ,straight line cancel

450 12 3

21 26C.2 .02 (Sc 29v) dot between "40" and "CENTIMES", used, 3margins, thin

102 3 3

22 22D .2.01 (Sc 25v) split frame line, used, 2 wide margins 121 39

6 TELL

March 200 1

23 27D (Sc 31) used, thin, 2+ margins 795 200

24 27Db (Sc 31) used, 2 wide margins, signed Kimmel 795 200

25 23Eb (Sc 27a) CDS GENEVE 29 SEPT 57, 4 margins, missingsilk thread, Guinand certificate

360 100

26 22F (Sc 32) used, 3 margins 855 250

27 21G (Sc 35) * VF part gum, 4 margins 216 78

28 21G (Sc 35) 2 margins VG used, CDS . .AYERNE 22 DEC 62 432 12 9

29 22G (Sc 36) used horizontal strip of 3 VF, 2 stamps 4margins,

1 stamp 3 margins84 29

30 24G.2.05 (Sc 38v) double impression in "CENTIMES", used ,2+ margins

195 64

31 30 .1 .10 (Sc 43v) control mark shifted to bottom perfs, used F -VF

45 1 4

32 36A (Sc 50a) gold-bronze, used F 330 9 9

33 48 .1 .10 (Sc 64v) * F pair, control mark shifted to botto mperfs,

90 2 7

34 49 .1 .15 (Sc 65v) ** NH complete half sheet of 50 with

geflicktem (patched up) paper variety at positions 38,39,49 .Minor perf. Separation, toning . A real showpiece!

240+ 15 0

35 50b.1 .13 (Sc 66v) 1 mm spot, perfin precursor "EK&C" inoval, Einsiedeln CDS, 2 short perfs. A unique combination ofrarities . Liniger and Guinand certificates .

3090+

100 0

36 51 .2.02 (Sc 67v) split frame line, box cancel Basel 22 MAR Z82,F

432 13 8

37 57 (Sc 81) used F Bern 24 V 83 CDS 240 10 0

38 62Aa (Sc 74v) KZ type 1, * F one short perf. 66 2 0

39 64A (Sc 76v) KZ type 1, * HR F-VF 156 60

40 64B (Sc 76) ** NH VF fresh color 120 60

41 64Bb (Sc 76v) * VF reddish color variety 102 40

42 65B (Sc 72) ** NH F-VF block of 4 84 40

43 66C (Sc 82av) * F KZ type 1, corner perf crease, Zeiglercertificate

435 150

44 69C (Sc 84av) used F KZ type 1 132 4 5

45 71B (Sc 93) few blunted perfs, F used 75 22

46 72Fa.3 .1/I (Sc 88v) used F-VF KZ type 2, one short perf ,Guinand certificate

5400 1500

47 77A.1 .15 (Sc 98v) control mark shifted near bottom perfs ,used F

7 6

48 77B (Sc 98) ** NH gum bend, F 72 2 5

49 77B.3 .02 (Sc 98v) "Florian" missing, used F, one short perf . 225 100

50 81 (Sc 114) ** NH F-VF block of 4 36 2 5

51 85a (Sc 118v) used avg ., reddish brown lilac color 144 40

52 89A (Sc 108a) * F HH 90 40

53 92A (Sc 111) used VG-F Altstattin 6 IV 07 CDS 114 40

54 95A (Sc 120) ** NH VF fresh color 19 1 2

55 98ab.123 (Sc 123v) blurred print, used avg ., wrinkled 60 1 9

56 113Y (Sc 139) ** NH VF 24 1 5

57 122 (Sc 166) ** NH VF 66 30

58 272 (Sc 303) ** NH F-VF 48 25

59 274 (Sc 305) ** NH F 150 75

60 277.2 .01 (Sc 308v) missing spoke variety, used VF 180 75

March 2001

7 TELL

61 279 .2 .02 (Sc 310v) missing mast variety, used VF 90 3 5

62 354 (Sc 381) block of 4 with central FD cancel, OG H 18 1 0

63 DIII20z (Sc 2O17a) used VF Geneve 12 V 34 CDS, signed Abt 420 17 5

64 DIII30 (Sc 2011) * F 156 75

65 DV5.2 .01 (Sc 4O5v) double impression, in ** VF block of 10 ( 9normal), thin in selvage but stamps VF NH, owner says only300 exist!

108/LP

300

66 F13 (Sc C15) ** NH VF 225 100

67 K7II (Sc 152a) * VF 111 60

68 K26yB (Sc 161av) block of 4 central Bern 22 V 33 CDS 72 50

69 K28-31 (Sc 220a-3a) blocks of 4 with central CDS 171 80

70 K34Az (Sc 232a) ** NH VF-XF 27 15

71 WIl-l1 (Sc B1-11) ** NH VF 587 300

72 WI7-9 (Sc B7-9) used VF blocks of 4 with unclear centeredcancel

1740 300

73 WI98I+99I .2 .01 (Sc B 116v) Y-shaped raster mark in hair, firs tday cancel, no gum, F

405 148

74 WII102 (Sc B297) ** NH VF SS #7 33 1 5

75 WIII23 (Sc B 144) * VLH, light pencil on back 63 35

76 WIII31 (Sc B 178) * H SS VF 39 20

77 Z33e (281,283) used VF CDS 54 25

78 Z33f (281,283) used VF slogan cancel 54 2 5

79 Z34e (Sc 281,283) used VF CDS 54 2 5

80 Z35b (Sc 281-3) used VF 2 CDS 36 20

81 Z36c (Sc 281-3) used VF flag cancel 36 20

82 Z38b (Sc 281-3) used VF 2 partial cancels 36 20

83 Z40 (Sc B229bv) 2 pairs in block of 4 with centered violet boxdate cancel

66 30

COVERS AND POSTAL HISTOR Y

84 PP1 "Gratis" label, not cancelled, ms "Armee de l'Est" onfolded letter from Interlaken 9 Feb 71 CDS to Nantes BS

810 22 0

85 SFL(stampless folded letter)s (2) Arberg straight line + ms 6 ,and 1829 Freiburg straight line + ms 8

1 0

86 SFL Aigle 6 Avril 48 CDS to "Le President du Tribunal d uDistrict de la Vaux" + ms "affaire officiel" and red "tres presse"

8

87 SFLs (3) Arberg or Aarberg CDS 1852, 1856, 1890, two withoval handstamps with "amtlich" within

1 0

88 SFL Oron 8 DEC 54 CDS to "Direction des travaux public " ,Fribourg, ms "officiel"

6

89 SFL 1859 straight line Ormont Dessus, red Suisse Amb .Geneve CDS, Lausanne soir + Montpellier BSS

1 0

90 Franco-Prussian War cover to Bienne with Erfurt 6/3 71 CD S+ circular handstamp of German camp commandant

30

91 SFL Arberg CDS, 1871 per letter with cursive handstam p"Kappelen"

7

92 SFL Ortschwaben 29 VII 75 to Aarberg BS 6

93 "Postes suisses Avis" card with imprinted FRANCO label andOron-la-Ville 25 XI 16 CDS

5

94 30 (Sc 43) on 5c brown stamped envelope (Z .16) PalezieuxVillage 5 XI 76 CDS to Zurich BS

9+ 7

8 TELL

March 200 1

95 38 (Sc 53) on FL Neuveville 22 Mai 68 petite CDS to Bern BS 9+ 7

96 37+38 (Sc 52+53) on "Remboursement" card of Expedition d el'Union Jurassienne, Neuveville 9II 80 CDS to Bern BS

9+ 7

97 37+38 (Sc 52+53) on "Abonnements" form with Aarberg 20 VII81 CDS and Meikirch BS, file fold

9+ 7

98 30 (Sc 43) on cover Aarberg 30 V 82 CDS and Bern +MeikirchBSS; also 30+38 (Sc 43+53) on folded Grundstenerquittungform Schupfen 7 XI 81 CDS and Meikirch BS

18 6

99 38 (Sc 53) (3) on registered cover, boxed and ms "Charge" ,Ormont-Dessus Diablerets 4 X 75 CDS to La Sarraz BS

8

100 121 (Sc 165) on "Remboursement Officiel" telephone cardBern 3 IV 12 CDS and Schupfen Telegr . Octagonalhandstamp BS

5

101 Railroad bills of lading (8) with 17 railroad revenue stamps ( 8diff.) from 10c to l Fr .

8

102 22G (Sc 36) on newspaper wrapper addressed to Zumstein 30+ 1 0

103 33+31(2) (Sc 46+44(2)) cover to England, Suisse/Pontarlierforwarding CDS, London receiving stamp (front), Rediton BS

LP 100

104 73E (Sc 94a) pair on registered cover Bern 20 IV 05 to Leipzi gBS

15+ 1 5

105 73E+74E (Sc 94a+96a) on registered cover Geneve 3 IV 03 t oBarcelona no BS

_54+ 45

106 151(7)+172 (Sc 199(7)+168C) on packet address slip LP 3 5

107 F5,F15 (Sc C5,C14) on 1930 cover to Moscow 111+ 40

108 WI121-4 (Sc B166-9) FDC 150 60

109 WI133-7 (Sc B196-200) FDC in German 210 60

110 Liechtenstein 1-3 (Sc 1-3) on FDC one day earlier than officia ldate!

360 90

March 2001 9 TELL

THE 1934 ARGENTINIAN FLIGHT OF THE GRAF ZEPPELIN

(continued from page 1) vicinity of the Zeppelin and an unusual comment in the newspaperstated that "strangers were not allowed to loiter near the Army barracks" !

Other arrangements included the establishment of special customs and postal services o nthe Campo de Mayo, and the National Department of Health arranged special facilities for th ebenefit of the passengers. An important aspect of the arrangements was the specia lmeteorological service provided by thirty-six "met" stations in Argentina and seven fro mUruguay, which allowed direct radio contact to be maintained with the "Graf' from the momen tit passed Panama. Such contact provided Dr. Eckener with continuous up to date weathe rconditions over Buenos Aires, the Estuary and over Montevideo . As the "Graf' approached herdestination a "met" service, established on the Campo de Mayo itself utilized a direct telephon elink to the radio station, thus enabling Dr . Eckener to receive last minute information on th eweather .

The "Graf', under the command of Airship Captain Lehmann, had left Friedrichshafen at8:20 PM on June 23, 1934 with thirteen passengers on board . It flew over Lyons and the Frenchcoast near Marseilles, before reaching Barcelona and the Canary Islands before making goo dspeed toward Pernambuco. A report from Hamburg quoted an eye witness sailor who estimate dthe "Graf's" speed overhead at 160 Km/hour ; in fact the average speed for the flight t oPernambuco was approximately 100 KM/hour . On arrival in Pernambuco, approximately 38 9pounds of mail was off loaded and immediately taken on board an aircraft of the Syndicat oCondor for the flight to Rio de Janeiro and for Argentinian mail for onward carriage to BuenosAires . (This is a very important bit of information . Mail on board was not taken to Argentina o nthe "Graf', but got there via a connecting Flight from Pernambuco) . The connecting flight arrivedon Thursday June 28th. The connecting flight arrived two days earlier than the "Graf' . Therecipients of mail were given time in which to write replies for return to Europe by the Zeppeli nservice. From Pernambuco, the "Graf' flew to Rio de Janeiro, where it remained for just twenty -five minutes, before setting out, under the command of Dr . Eckener and now with twenty-tw opassengers, for Buenos Aires .

On June 30th the gates of Campo de Mayo were opened at 6 AM and it was not long befor epeople in their cars were streaming onto the field through gates 2,3 and 5. No less than 18,00 0cars arrived, but most of their occupants remained inside because of the bitter cold weather .Many of the soldiers present were obliged to indulge in vigorous physical exercises to kee pwarm. However, not all spectators arrived by car . The East and Central Railways ran specialtrains, thus encouraging more people to make the trip . Special arrangements had been made fo rscouts and schoolchildren to enter through gate No . 4 and to be positioned on each side of anenclosure designated for special guests . The Argentinian German scouts together with theirArgentinian counterparts provided a colorful spectacle with their banners . The landing parties ,who had practiced their routines under the direction of Captain Villafane, took up theirpositions. The landing party was divided up into five groups, including a group to ensure th eengine gondolas did not hit the ground and to secure the gondola . Members of the landing part ywere instructed not to talk during the landing, thus ensuring they would be able to hearinstructions shouted down from the "Graf .

Then as the first rays of the sun struck the Camp de Mayo, there escaped in unison fro mthe lips of the intently watching multitude the exclamation "The Dirigible!" Indeed, in th edistance, approaching from the northeast, there was clearly visible the distinctive shape of th eZeppelin, seemingly as a static object . It slowly drew closer and at 7 :45 AM, as it commenced it sflight over the city of Buenos Aires, it passed immediately over the Campo de Mayo -- just as th emilitary band arrived, in readiness to play a range of military marches at the landing itself . TheZeppelin's arrival over the city was greeted by the sirens of the boats in the harbor and by th ethousands of people who rushed out into the streets and squares to wonder at this, the firstdirigible to be seen in Argentina .

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March 2000

The excitement of the event cause dpeople to break through the military cordon ,but their advance was short-lived and orderwas quickly restored .

For the return flight, the cargoincluded a bunch of flowers, which Dr .Eckener was to drop over Montevideo as atoken of respect from the wife of thePresident to the neighboring Republic .Additionally, the 295 pounds of mail wereput aboard : this had cost no less than30,000 pesos - one of the more valuablecargoes of mail carried by the "Graf' .Arrangements for the last minute posting o fthis mail had been well publicized, with thedeadline for receipt at the Central Post office of registered mail being 10 PM on the day beforedeparture and 11 :30 PM for ordinary mail . Mail could also be handed in at the intersection o fCalle Florida and Corrientes up to 7 PM .

After a stop of just over an hour, the Graf was once more on her way . Dr. Eckener radioedthe following message, "I should be grateful if you would accept our renewed greetings from th e"Graf Zeppelin" on her first visit to the great Republic of Argentina" . In reply, Colonel Zuloago ,Director of Aeronautics, radioed, "I return the greetings, and we hope the first visit of the `Gra fZeppelin' marks the start of a regular service for the continued co-operation with Germany . Withadmiration, I wish you a good journey ." The "Graf'now made her way to Juan Laceza, Libertad(12 :02), Isla de Tigre (12 :22), and at 12 :28 arrived over Montevideo . Then, on the way to Rio, theZeppelin encountered heavy rain, and stopped for only 25 minutes before setting out fo rPernambuco and Europe. Meanwhile back in Buenos Aires, the crowds went home, many ofthem courtesy of the extra trains . It had been a successful visit, but it was to be the only one the"Graf ' was to make to Argentina .

Articles in Other Journalsby Heinrich Heissinge r

"Private entires imprinted with 'Helveti awith Sword' and the wrong backgroundcolor" ; by Armando Lualdi in Ganzsachen-sammler, newsletter of the Swissassociation of collectors of postal entires ,No. 67, pp. 1265 - 1270 .

Between 1907 and 1930, private envelopes ,postcards, wrappers and others could b eordered with stamp imprints of current design sin different denominations. ("private entires") .

In 1988, four such entires with imprint sof 25 Rp Helvetia with Sword were found withgreen instead of blue background color . Thisvariety also occurs in the actual perforatedstamp, Zumstein number 109 .1 .09, and ispriced at Sfr . 6,000.

Since then, other private entires wit hthe Helvetia with Sword imprint of 25, 40 and

50 Rp have been found with various imprope rback-ground colors .

The author lists all such varietie sknown as of today and attempts to givepossible explanations for their existence .

It might be well worth your time tocheck your stock !

"Surprises with the postmark SCHWEIZERFLUGPOST", by Roland F. Kohl, in SBZOctober 2000, pp. 505-5066.

This postmark was issued in spring of 1919 asan airmail arrival postmark for Berne, Zurich ,St. Gallen, Lausanne and Geneva. It was inGerman language and generic, as it did no tshow the city of arrival .

All of these have been documented asbeing in use since April 30, 1919, except fo rthe one sent to Geneva (Handbuch LGE 1) ,which like Lausanne

(continued on page 15)

March 2000

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SWISS PHILATELIC LITERATUR EPART II : Durheim and Rayons issues

by Heinrich Heissinger

Introduction to Part I IPart I of this series listed the major Swiss philatelic literature sources up to 1924 . This andsubsequent articles in this series attempt to survey the important literature according to subjec tmatter -- like specific stamp issues, or associated fields (Rayons, Strubels, postmarks, postalrates etc.) -- from 1924 to the present . I will list the main sources of knowledge for these fields ,and give a brief synopsis of the contents .

The term "present" cannot be taken literally . Some of these literature sources werepublished a long time ago, but they are still the major fountain of knowledge today . Philatelicliterature is usually limited to a small number of copies, which sell out quickly . I would like todefine the term "present" as literature which can still be purchased today through auctions ,stamp dealers or philatelic literature dealers. You may be able to borrow some of these from theAmerican Philatelic ResearchLibrary (of the APS) in StateCollege ; the APRL has a goodrange of SBZ and BBZ.

There are two mainobstacles for the collector: thecost of these antique books i soften high, and only a smal lportion of these books are i nEnglish. Knowledge of French ,and especially of German, isnecessary .

For those who canovercome these hurdles, th erewards are substantial . Theinformation gained results indetailed knowledge, whichenables the collector to specia-lize. This opens entirely newhorizons and sources of satis-faction .

A disclaimer : this series ofarticles is based on my personalcollection of Swiss philateli cliterature, and I will not promisethat it is complete. However, Ibelieve that over the years I haveaccumulated most of theimportant issues.

Part IIa : THEDURHEIM ISSUES

Zumstein numbers 13 through20 are Ortspost, Poste Localeand the Rayons I, II and III .

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They are often called the "Durheim issues", based on the printer's name . They were printed i nlithography, which means using stone plates . Original stones had 40 images, which were hand -drawn and each had its own slight variation. Transfer to printing plates caused furthervariations of these `types'. A basic understanding of lithography is necessary, and chapter 3 of"A Study of the Swiss Federal Adminstration Issued Stamps, 1850 - 1854, and their forgeries "by Professor Anton M . Kofranek, 1999, is a good start .

The 1975 reprint of Mirabaud and Reuterskiöld's The Postage Stamps of Switzerland 1843 -1862, in English language, gives a good overview of the Durheim issues, even if some of thei rassumptions have been proven wrong by later research . Other good sources are the Handbuchüber die Brief-marken der Schweizerischen Eidgenossenschaft (the so-called 1924 ZumsteinHandbuch) and, of course, the current Spezialkatalog Schweiz by Zumstein .

Ortspost and Poste LocaleThere is still room for further research about these issues . For determining the type, one can us ethe excellent plate prints in Mirabaud and Reuterskiöld . Most of today's knowledge goes back tothe following publications :

Bemerkungen zur Poste Locale by Dr . Herbert Munk. Edited by Verband SchweizerischerPhilatelisten - Vereine, 1946 .

"Allerlei Neues über Poste Locale und Ortspost" by Dr. Herbert Munk. Reprint from `DieBasler Taube', Nr . 3/4, 1951 .Ernst Müller AG, Basel .

"Eine Richtigstellung" by Dr. Herbert Munk, in SBZ (Schweizer Breifmarken Zeitung) 7 / 1947

Rayons I and IIA good basis to the understanding of Rayons I and II can be found in BBZ Nos 10 and 11 of1957: "Die Steindruckausgaben der Schweiz1850/1852" by Walter Hirzel . He lists allstones used and describes their particularcharacteristics in general terms .

Until the late 1930s, very little was knownabout these issues . The 40 different basic type swere known, but there was no knowledge abou tthe different printing stones . Collections werebased simply on different color shades .

This changed dramatically with Dr .Herbert Munk's research . In painstaking workhe reconstructed most of the different stones . Aseries of articles and small books brought thi sresearch to the collector's attention . ' Thesearticles and books are still the bible for Rayoncollectors, and a `must read' . In reading them ,one cannot help but admire the analytical mindof this great man. After his death in 1953 ,others finished the task, and all of these stoneshave now been completely reconstructed . ForZumstein 17 alone, 9 different stones wereused, with 30 different transfers from theoriginal stone, for a total of 1,200distinguishable stamps !

Specialists collect Rayons according t o

March 2001 13 TELL

types and printing stones, and it requires much knowledge to be successful in identifying thes estamps .

Dr. Munk's publications were :

Neue Wege zur Erforschung der Eidgenössischen Ausgaben 1850 ff in Kreuzmuster by Dr .Herbert Munk. Edited by Verband Schweizerischer Philatelisten -Vereine, 1941 . This book hadbeen published before as a series of articles in BBZ (Berner Breifmarken Zeitung) of June 1938 toOctober 1941 .

Etudes sur les premières émissions fédérales de 1850/51 by Dr . Herbert Munk. L' union desSociétés philatéliques suisses, 1942 .

Die Drucksteine der beiden Rayon I by Dr. Herbert Munk, 1944 .

Die Durheim - Ausgaben . Ergänzungen und Berichtigungen by Dr. Herbert Munk. Edited by`Verband Schweizerischer Philatelisten - Vereine', 1950. An English translation of this study canbe found in "A Study of the Swiss Federal Adminstration Issued Stamps, 1850 - 1854, and thei rforgeries" by Professor Anton M . Kofranek, 1999 (available on CD from AHPS) .

Once a collector has acquired the basic knowledge by studying Dr . Munk's research, hewill be ready to start identifying stones and types of his Rayons . This is impossible without thefollowing two books, which will give all the tools needed for the task :

Bestimmung der Drucksteine der Rayon I hellblau aufgrund der verschiedenen Feld-merkmale in Blaudruck by M . Colombi, W. Städeli, V . Streiff. Buri - Druck, Bern, ca. 1973 .

Bestimmung der Drucksteine der Rayon II auf Grund der verschiedenen Feldmerkmale imSchwarzdruck by Ernst Müller, Basel, 1968

Several articles will help to deepen the understanding :

"Der `Missglückte Stein' von Rayon I hellblau" by Werner Städeli in SBZ 8/1966 .

"Der 'Unbekannte Stein' der Rayon I hellblau" by Dr . V. Streiff in SBZ 9/1970 .

"Bemerkungen zur Rekonstruktion des A-2 - Steines der Rayon II" by H . Hunziker in SBZ4/1960.

"Betrachtungen über die Kreuzeinfassungen bei den Rayon - Ausgaben" by Dr. V . Streiff inSBZ 3/1967.

"Zwei neue Beobachtungen bei Rayon Marken" by Dr. V. Streiff in SBZ 11/1968 .

"Die Rotdruckwappen de rRayon" by Werner Städeli inSBZ 10/1953. The same articlecan be found in PostgeschichteNo . 8 .

As with most issues, ther eare plate flaws, varieties an dmisprints . Several articles giveinformation :

"Das heisse Eisen: Die doppel-ten Rotdrucke der Durheimaus-gaben" Gottfried Honegger cata-logue 1986 .

"Die doppelten Rotdrucke be iden dunkelblauen Rayons "Gottfried Honegger catalogu e1990 .

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"Rayon II - Fehldruck nach 108 Jahrenentdeckt" by Werner Städeli in SBZ 2/1959 .The same article can be found in BBZ7,8/1959 in French .

Rayon IIIThe Rayon III, Zumstein 20, large figures o fvalue, is a relatively uncomplicated issue, an dthe standard for the plating andunderstanding of it is :

Die Ausgabe Rayon III , 15 Rp ., grosseWertziffer by René Gees, CH-943 5Heerbrugg, 1970 .

The other two issues, Zumstein 18 withsmall figures of value, and Zumstein 19, cts ,have not been plated so far .

Dates of useA study of the time periods the Durheim issue swere in use in different areas of Switzerlan dcan be found in :

"Schweiz - Zeitliche Abfolge un dgeographische Verteilung der Ausgabe n1843 bis 1852" by Heinrich Jäckli in BBZ7,8/ 1986 and 9/1986 .

A Winning Swiss Poster Stampby Harlan F. Stone

The philatelically related poster stampillustrated here is a charming example of anincreasingly popular field for collectors . It isan advertisement printed in red with whiteembossing for a Bern stamp dealer specializingin Swiss stamps . The first man is trundling aBasel dove in a bird cage, and the second i stoting a Zürich 4 stamp . This miniature poste rturned up in an ephemera show in England .Does any other AHPS member have othe rposter stamps devoted to the theme of Swissstamps?

March 2001

Articles in Other Journals

(continued from page 11) received a secondcancel in early May in the proper Frenchlanguage: GENEVE POSTE AERIENNE SUISSE(Handbuch LGE 2) . According to the "Luftpos tHandbuch", Geneva's German version of thi spostmark had never been used .

Recently two covers have been foundshowing this German version on letters t oGeneva. The 'Handbuch' needs to be corrected .

"We research. . . we research no more . . . Butwe search again . . ."; by Pierre Guinand, inBerner Briefmarken Zeitung (BBZ) Decem-ber 2000, pp . 205-206 .

Retouch 3 .21/I was known until now on 66A ,66B and 66E. These were printed with printingplate Ia, where the retouch is located on fiel d103 . It should be possible on 66C, as thi sstamp was also printed with plate la , but untilrecently none had been found . Guinand showsthe first 66C which surfaced with this retouch ,and gives much information about fields 3 an d103 of Zumstein No . 66 .

This retouch is said to come in tw ostages, but stage I could possibly be just aworn spot on the plate. Theoretically it shouldnot be possible on 66D and 94A, but Guinandwould not bet on it .

"Bulle, September 29, 1929 - a forgotte nairshow", by Roland Kohl, in SBZ November2000, pp . 563-64

This airshow is a new listing (SF 29 .6)in the Swiss airmail catalogue . According tolocal newspapers, flights were offered for a fee ,but there was no mention of airmail .Nevertheless, an airmail collector preparedletters which were flown from Bulle toLausanne . The franking was cancelled "Fêted'Aviation +Bulle+" . This cancel was of privateorigin, but it was obviously accepted by thelocal postal authority .

Linn's Stamp News published a small articleon Dec . 11 reporting our publication of Ma xKaufmann's article on forged postmarks .

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Watch the May TELL for more information on the next AHPS Annual Meeting . The

meeting will be in connection with SESCAL, October 5-7 in Los Angeles . We look to

have a seminar, business meeting, and a dinner together, and to have as much fu n

as we have had at previous meetings! Put it on your calendar now!

Wallace Craig will be the AHPS contact/organizer at SESCAL. If you want to

volunteer to help, or need to contact him for some other reason, his email address i s

wamcraig@aol.com and his phone number is 714-525-8579 .

American Helvetia Philatelic Societ yTreasurer's Report for the year 200 0

December 1,1999-November 30,200 0

Balance November 30, 1999 -$ 16,060 :00Ordinary IncomeMembers' Dues $ 6,700.00Advertising 843 .00Auctions 1,208.00C/D Rom sales 5S0.00Interest Earned 881 .00Miscellaneous 388.00 10.-600 :00

Other IncomeMembers' Subscriptions- Swiss Verein 1,155.00

- Great Britain 925.00TELL-First class mailing 190.00

- Swiss Verein Grant 223.00 2.493,00TOTAL INCOME $ 13,093 .00

Ordinary ExpenseTELL Publication & Distribution $ 7,324.00Postage, Printing, Supplies 1 .042.00 -8 .366 .00

Other ExpensesVerein & Great Britain Remittances $

1 .937 .00TOTAL EXPENSE $ 10,303 .00

Balance November 30, 2000 $ 18,850 .00------------------------------------------------------------ -

Life Membership Fun dBalance November 3-0, 1999 $

3,582.00Dues Paid 400.00Interest Earned (To be credited 4/14/01 )Balance November 30, 2000 $

3,982.00

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