Reklamemarken Anton Weber Koffer- und Taschenfabrik, Nürnberg - Set of 5 poster stamps Anton Weber Suitcase and bag factory, Nuremberg

Reklamemarken Anton Weber Koffer- und Taschenfabrik, Nürnberg.
Set of 5 poster stamps Anton Weber Suitcase and bag factory, Nuremberg.

9 Poster stamps (Reklamemarken) advertising famous RAKO TILES (Czech language variety)

Tiles produced by Rakovnicke Keramicke the Rako Factory near Prague.

HISTORY OF RAKO COMPANY

1882. - When the flood of 1882 devastated the Rakovník region and destroyed the entire network of developing black coal shafts, no-one suspected that such a catastrophe would bring forth the most famous of Czech ceramics plants and major industries in the Rakovník region. While it was not possible to restore mining in the shafts, the mine owner, Moravia mining company, decided to use the remaining buildings, siding and some of the advanced technical equipment for the manufacture of ceramics.

1883. - Following preliminary testing, the shaft buildings of St. Mořič were equipped in 1883 with clay processing machines, hydraulic presses and three round kilns. From this time, production of refractory bricks and gray floor tiles was launched and has been going strong for 125 years.

1898. - The factory was purchased at the beginning of 1898 by Mr. Kasalovský and Mr. Sommerschuh. Emil Sommerschuh played an important role in the development of the factory and the range of products. He was the son of a well-known Prague ceramist and producer of tiled stones. Thanks to his skills, knowledge and cooperation with several painters, sculptors and architects, the factory’s assortment of products were soon extended to porous tiles, new types of tiles and tile stoves, mosaic facings a la Persian carpets, ceramic pictures, garden and cemetery ceramics, special relief building facing and façade tiles. Cooperation with top artists led to a high esthetic level of the products and apart from commercial success, also brought home awards at international exhibitions and competitions.

1907. - The factory was sold in 1907 to Hans II, Price of Liechtenstein, who already owned a ceramics factory in Poštovná near Břeclav. Through close cooperation of both factories, an enterprise of significant importance was created. Emil Sommerschuh was appointed CEO and continued developing the business. Great works of art were created in buildings that serve us to this day, such as the Municipal House in Prague, the recently reopened Imperial Hotel on Na Poříčí Street, the sculptures in front of the Eastern Bohemia Museum in Hradec Králové and many others.

1920. - Hans of Liechtenstein sold his ceramics factories in 1920 to Živnobanka, a joint-stock company with controlling interest. During the period before WW2, several mechanical innovations were introduced and most of the production halls of the existing department of earthenware tiles were built. People became more interested in façade facing during the 1920s and 1930s.

1945. - Production was significantly restricted during WW2. In 1945, activities increased when the plant was nationalized and a further 17 plants were attached to the Rakovník-based ceramics plant. Gradual consolidation of production came about as late as 1947.

1949. - In 1949, a reorganization of the company established three new national enterprises. Further reorganizational changes were implemented in the years to follow. The production of tiles and stove tiles were not restored in Rakovník, but increased construction in post-war Europe required supplies of ceramic floor tiles, especially earthenware tiles. Demand for tiles resulted in restricted production of technological demanding products.

1955. - At the turn of the 1950’s and 1960’s, the first major post-war reconstruction efforts began and investments were made in the company. These activities resulted in the later modernization of all production divisions.

1961. - Tile operation underwent extensive reconstruction from 1961-1964. A dispersal drier was used for the first time to prepare pressing material and the Rakovník ceramics plants became an international pioneer in this technology.

1980. - Construction of a new plant called RAKO III in Lubná near Rakovník was completed at the beginning of the 1980s.

1991. - In the 1990s, changes in the economic and political climate brought about the change from a national enterprise to a joint-stock company (1991), which to this very day is still comprised of five plants.

1994. - A leading German producer of construction ceramics, Deutsche Steinzeug Cremer and Breuer AG, was the major shareholder in Rakovník ceramics plants from 1994 to 2002.

2002. - In 2002, the major shareholder was replaced by the LASSELSBERGER family-owned company from Austria, which has incorporated RAKO into the LASSELSBERGER, a. s. group.

LASSELSBERGER s.r.o is currently the biggest producer of ceramic facing material in the Czech Republic and is one of the key players on the European market. It preserves and develops the 125 year tradition of the RAKO brand, including its comprehensive offer of housing ceramics, which it enhances each year with a new collection. It provides system solutions for commercial and non-commercial facilities through its own products under the LB OBJECT brand.

Bertold Löffler Poster stamps (Reklamemarken)

Berthold Löffler (1874 Nieder-Rosenthal, Bohemia--1960 Vienna) studied at the school of the Gewerbemuseum (Craft Museum) in Reichenberg, in his native Bohemia, before moving to Vienna to study at the Kunstgewerbeschule (School of Arts and Crafts), where he eventually became a professor. He was a central figure in the later development of the Wiener Werkstätte (Vienna Workshop), the art and design collective founded in 1903 by Josef Hoffmann and Koloman Moser, that pursued the ideal of the Gesamtkunstwerk (total artwork), a unification of artists and craftsmen of different disciplines in the creation of an overarching lifestyle concept.

Early in his career, Löffler worked independently as a painter and illustrator and also began to experiment with ceramics. In 1906, he founded the firm Wiener Keramik (Vienna Ceramics) with fellow-artist Michael Powolny. The firm contributed tiles to the Wiener Werkstätte’s Palais Stoclet in Brussels (1905-1911), and, from around 1907 on, the Werkstätte assumed distribution and sales of Wiener Keramik. The Keramik’s figurative pieces sold exceptionally well in the Werkstätte’s shops. Löffler and the Keramik were also significant contributors to the Werkstätte’s Cabaret Fledermaus in Vienna, designing the colorful patchwork of decorative tiles covering the walls of the barroom. Löffler designed a well-known poster for the Cabaret, as well as contributing graphics for its program and stationery, among other things. In 1912, the Wiener Keramik merged with the Künstlerische Werkstätte (Artistic Workshop) Franz und Emilie Schleiss in Gmunden, forming the Vereinigte Wiener und Gmundner Keramik und Tonwarenfabrik Schleiss Gesellschaft (United Vienna and Gmunden Ceramics and Gmunden Earthenware Factory Schleiss). Gmundner Keramik is still in operation today.

Despite his involvement in the WienerKeramik, Löffler was primarily a graphic artist. He was involved with the 1908 "Kunstschau" (Art Show), which highlighted the Wiener Werkstätte and the Klimtgruppe (Klimt Group)—a group of artists, led by Gustav Klimt, that had broken away from the Secession. For the exhibition, Löffler designed a display of contemporary graphics (covering the gallery’s walls from floor to ceiling) and an iconic poster, among other contributions. He also designed postcards for the Werkstätte’s series of nearly one thousand numbered artists’ cards, in addition to Werkstätte jewelry and other products.

Löffler and the Wiener Keramik are associated with a stylistic shift at the Werkstätte, from the geometry associated with Hoffmann and Moser in its early years to a more decorative sensibility, as well as a renewed focus on the use of the human figure.

Two Complete sets in blocks of 10 German Poster stamps (Reklamemarken) - Löwen Brauerei (Biere), Berlin - Brewery, Beer - Artists: Brothers Martin & Walter LEHMANN-STEGLITZ

Martin Lehmann studierte gemeinsam mit seinem Zwillingsbruder Walter an der Kunstgewerbeschule Dessau und bei Max Koch an der Unterrichtsanstalt des Kunstgewerbemuseums in Berlin. Anschließend arbeiteten sie für die Druckerei Arnold Weylandt in Berlin. 1913 gründeten beide gemeinsam ein Werbeatelier in Berlin-Steglitz nieder und nannten sich seitdem Lehmann-Steglitz. Gleichzeitig traten beide in den Deutschen Werkbund bei. Sie illustrierten u. a. die "Berliner Volkszeitung" und "Das Plakat". Nach dem Tod Walters 1921 führte Martin das Atelier allein weiter. Er schuf unzählige Gebrauchsgrafiken und Plakate für zahlreiche Firmen, darunter u. a. die Deutsche Reichsbahn, Kodak, Persil, 4711 und Kaffee Hag. Daneben arbeitete er auch für die Wahlwerbung der Deutschen Demokratischen Partei und schuf auch einige Aquarelle. So ist von seinem Aufenthalt im Harz 1913 u. a. ein in Privatbesitz befindliches Aquarell vom Schloss Rammelburg bekannt.

Am 19. Juli 1945 geriet Martin Lehmann-Steglitz in sowjetische Gefangenschaft. Er war in mehreren Lagern inhaftiert und soll in der Haftanstalt Brandenburg-Görden 1950 zuletzt lebend gesehen worden sein. 1962 wurde er für tot erklärt.

J.N. Eberle & Cie Saws, (Sägen) from Augsburg. Artist: BPG (Hans Beyer-Preusser, Fritz P. Glasemann), Complete set of 5 German poster stamps (Reklamemarken)

J.N. Eberle & Cie Saws, (Sägen) from Augsburg.
Artist:
BPG (Hans Beyer-Preusser, Fritz P. Glasemann), Complete set of 5 German poster stamps (Reklamemarken)

TURNVEREIN - Gymnastics Club, Friedrich Ludwig Jahn - Complete set of 12 Poster stamps (Reklamemarken) with J.M. Hirschmann Kunstanstalt (Diplome, Plakate, Postkarten) Offenbach imprint

TURNVEREIN - Gymnastics Club,  Friedrich Ludwig Jahn - Complete set of 12 Poster stamps (Reklamemarken) with J.M. Hirschmann Kunstanstalt (Diplome, Plakate, Postkarten) from Offenbach imprint.

Turners (German: Turner) are members of German-American gymnastic clubs that also served as nationalist political groups that were politically active and often served in German military outfits as well as the Union Army in the United States during the American Civil War.

A German gymnastic movement was started by Turnvater ("father of gymnastics")

Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the early 19th century when Germany was occupied by Napoleon. The Turnvereine ("gymnastic unions", from German turnen meaning “to practice gymnastics”, and Verein meaning “club, union”) were not only athletic, but also political, reflecting their origin in similar "nationalistic gymnastic" organizations in Europe. The Turner movement in Germany was generally liberal in nature, and many Turners took part in the Revolution of 1848.

After its defeat, the movement was suppressed and many Turners left Germany, some emigrating to the United States. Several of these Forty-Eighters went on to become Civil War soldiers, the great majority in the Union Army, and American politicians.  Besides serving as physical education, social, political and cultural organizations for German immigrants, Turners were also active in the American public education and the labor movements. Eventually the German Turner movement became involved in the process leading to German unification.

Sarrasani circus - Complete set of 10 poster stamps (Reklamemarken)

Sarrasani circus

Sarrasani is a German circus that reached world fame before World War II and was resident in Dresden, but also became known as the national circus of Argentina during the years of German separation.

Opening in 1912

Stationary circus building in Dresden

Sarrasani was founded by Hans Stosch, a clown with the stage name Giovanni Sarrasani, who was born 1873 in Poznań. Stosch came 1901 to Radebeul near Dresden and the circus had its official premiere 1902 in Meißen. In the year 1912 a stationary circus building opened, which was designed by Max Littmann for Sarrasani. The circus often performed abroad and reached world fame. Its well-known labels were the elephants, but the circus was also known for the Sioux, who were employed from the early years.

From 1923 to 1925 Sarrasani went on its first tour through South America. In these years, Stosch-Sarrasani also introduced innovative marketing concepts and wrote fictive adventure stories Fahrten und Abenteuer, Mit Sarrasani in Südamerika. Totally, about 10 million copies of these booklets were distributed.

After the death of Hans Stosch-Sarrasani Sr., his son Hans Stosch-Sarrasani Jr. took directorship. He was followed by his widow, Trude Stosch-Sarrasani, in 1941. The Sarrasani theater was destroyed on 13 February 1945 during the Bombing of Dresden in World War II. Trude Stosch-Sarrasani emigrated to Argentina, where she reestablished the circus in Buenos Aires as the "Circo Nacional Argentino."