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GERMAN COLONIES
MARSHALL INSELN
OFFICIAL POSTCARDS

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VORLAUFERS

Vorlaufers or forrunners are mail items that were originally meant for use in Germany but were instead used at overseas post offices and colonies due to a lack of local stamps and postcards in those areas. A true forerunner has a German issue stamp on a German issued postcard and has an overseas or colonial cancellation.

GERMAN EMPIRE REGULAR ISSUE
PFENNIG



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Michel VU12, VS7, VP8, VP12, VP16, VP18, VP19, VP14 and VP15


GERMAN EMPIRE REGULAR ISSUE
CROWN / EAGLE
(No Overprint)



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Michel VU13, VS8, VP20 to VP36


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MICHEL P1 to P4
GERMAN EMPIRE REGULAR ISSUE
CROWN / EAGLE
(Marschall-Inslen Overprint)

Michel P1 to P4 are postcards that have pre-printed crown/eagle stamps with a black diagonal 'Marschall-Inseln' overprint running from the botton left-hand side of the stamp to the top right-hand side. These postcards measure 140 x 90mm and are inscribed 'REICHSPOST'.

MICHEL P1

Issued 1897.

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Michel P1
5Pf, green


MICHEL P2

Issued 1897.

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Michel P2
10Pf, carmine


MICHEL P3

Issued 1897. There are two variations of P3, more details required.

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Michel P3
Reply Card
2x 5Pf, green


MICHEL P4

Issued 1898/99.

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Michel P4
2x 10Pf, carmine


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MICHEL P5 to P9
GERMAN EMPIRE REGULAR ISSUE
CROWN / EAGLE
(Marshall-Inslen Overprint)

Michel P5 to P9 are the same as P1 to P4 except the spelling of the word 'Marschall' has been revised to 'Marshall' (no longer a 'c' in the name).

MICHEL P5

Issued 1899.

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Michel P5
5Pf, green


MICHEL P6

Issued 1899.

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Michel P6
10Pf, carmine


MICHEL P7

Issued 1899.

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Michel P7
Reply Card
2x 5Pf, green


MICHEL P8

Issued 1899.

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Michel P8
Reply Card
2x 10Pf, carmine


MICHEL P9

Issued 1900.

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Michel P9
5Pf, green


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MICHEL PP1 and PP2

PRIVATE ISSUE
GERMAN EMPIRE REGULAR ISSUE
CROWN / EAGLE
(Marshall-Inslen Overprint)

MICHEL PP1

Issued 1900.

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Michel PP1
5Pf


MICHEL PP2

Issued 1900.

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Michel PP2
10Pf


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MICHEL P11 to P18
REGULAR ISSUE IMPERIAL YACHT

P11 to P18 were issued from 1901 and depict the Kaiser's yacht with the inscription 'MARSHALL-INSELN in an arc across the top. The postcards were issued to coincide with the new Marshall Inseln stamps which have the same design as the pre-printed stamps on these postcards. Unfortunately there are a lot of fake versions of these postcards available on the internet. Not only have the Marshall Inseln postcards been forged, but also all other colonial issues of these postcards as well. However the forgeries and the real versions can be differentiated by looking closely at the pre-printed stamps. Below are two close up views of postcards (the genuine one is the image on the left and the forged is the image on the right) in the Kaiser's yacht series to assist with determining which are fake and which are genuine.

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Genuine
Forged

The genuine stamp has clearly defined white lines running up the two smoke stacks (chimneys), two parallel lines on each chimney. The fake versions are much less visible and almost disappear on the second smoke stack. The horizontal shading lines each side of the denomination are also much clearer on the genuine stamp. Finally the smoke emitting from the genuine chimneys is much sharper than the blurred smoke of the fake version.

If you are looking to buy any of these postcards on the internet and the image posted is too small for you to make a positive identification, then it should be noted that the fake postcards look much newer and fresher than the genuine items. These postcards are over 100 years old and should not look like they are fresh of the printing press.

MICHEL P11

Issued 1901.

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Michel P11
5Pf green


MICHEL P12

Issued 1901.

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Michel P12
10Pf carmine


MICHEL P13
REPLY CARD

Issued 1901

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Michel P13
Reply Card
2x 5Pf, green


MICHEL P14
REPLY CARD

Issued 1901.

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Michel P14
Reply Card
2x 10Pf, carmine


MICHEL P15

Issued 1901.

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Michel P15
5Pf green


MICHEL P16

Issued 1901.

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Michel P16
10Pf carmine


MICHEL P17
REPLY CARD

Issued 1901

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Michel P17
Reply Card
2x 5Pf, green


MICHEL P18
REPLY CARD

Issued 1901.

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Michel P18
Reply Card
2x 10Pf, carmine


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MICHEL P1 to P4
BRITISH OCCUPATION
IMPERIAL YACHT

1914. These four postcards are German issue Marshall Inseln Imperial Yacht postcards with a "G.R.I." overprint.

MICHEL P1



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Michel P1
1d on 5Pf, green


MICHEL P2



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Michel P2
2d on 10Pf, carmine


MICHEL P3



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Michel P3
Reply Card
2x 1d on 5Pf, green


MICHEL P4



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Michel P4
Reply Card
2x2d on 10Pf, carmine


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This page was last updated
04-Aug-2021 06:59