Translation needed of German info on Austrian Symbolzahlen

AKPhilately · **Posted:** Wed Mar 14, 2012 02:21:05 am

I found this bit of information in German on the so-called Symbolzahlen of Austrian stamps of the 1960s.

I've read it so many times now and it still isn't clear to me precisely what it says. Especially the bits from "Der Zweck war..." until "...den jeweiligen Schalterbogen".

Can somebody please explain to me what it is that was happening and what the Nutzen solution to the problem was?

Danke!

AKPhilately · **Posted:** Sat Mar 17, 2012 22:24:38 pm

Nobody any idea? As in please? Bitte?

The Pom · **Posted:** Sat Mar 17, 2012 22:29:59 pm

I put the document through an optical character recognition programme & put the result through Google translate.

Result:

Quote:

In the mid-dos 1965 ffihrte the Osterreichiache Staatadruckerei
to the internal Grfinden Druckbfigen the identification of post-
using a character value aogenannten "S! MBOLZIPPER 'ein._Die collectors
named this symbol in the figure Synbolzahlen Polge. The Zveck var '
Uberprflfung of the waste of each edition. Since vorgekonaen ea
iat the presence of various ausgeachiedene Bfigen sue denominated Autlage
vurden auageteuscht against those of frfiheren requirements and apekulativen
At market prices erachienen, schfitzte aolchen the symbol digit var
Machinations. Depending on the printing sheet was given a one to many:
different types of symbol digits, depending on whether he in 1-, 2-
or 4-person benefit was printed. Then give the benefit Dieae jeveiligen
Counter sheet. The distinction dieeer Schalterbfigen, beaondera e, b
and c, d can be angenoumen natflrlich only de Originaldruckbfigen
not to atehen Vorffigung and therefore difficult warden may teatgostellt Nehr,
whether a similar ranking of bezv. c left or right is in print form.
a, b bezv. c, d are easy to distinguish desvegen, the de Erateren
Located in the upper part of the Druckbogena and therefore the dutch dutch-
continuous perforation at unterenfflogenrand clearly marked in eind.
Collectors Circle vill dieae perforation then as durchgezfihnt beau. not
durchgezfihnt known, what is wrong and to TFIR because a Zihnung
only given is the perforation is venn bereita severed.

:

Seems clear to me.

AKPhilately · **Posted:** Sat Mar 17, 2012 22:38:24 pm

Well, I did actually just type the text into Google Translate which did yield a better translation but of course it wasn't clear enough on exactly the points I didn't get in the first place, so that was no good to me at all...

honza · **Posted:** Sun Mar 18, 2012 05:58:06 am

Ahoj Adrian!

Is it possible to post a picture of a Symbolzahl please?

Cheers,

Honza

AKPhilately · **Posted:** Sun Mar 18, 2012 06:19:09 am

Ahoj Honza,
Of course it is:
taken from ebay:

honza · **Posted:** Sun Mar 18, 2012 07:25:02 am

Ahoj Adrian!

Thanks for your prompt reply.

I must confess I have never seen them before.

I was hoping that seeing them might make the text clearer, but I am not sure that that is the case.

Anyway I will have a go from der Zweck to den jeweiligen Schalterbogen.

The purpose was to provide oversight over the printers' waste of current issues. Since it had happened that some of the rejected sheets from the current run had been changed for sheets from earlier issues and appeared on the market at speculative prices, the Symbolzahlen offered security against such manipulation. According to the print run each printed sheet received one to four different types of Symbolzahlen each in accordance with whether it was printed in the 1st, 2nd or 4th (uses???). These (uses??) produced the current counter sheets.

I am not sure what Nutzen means here - font or number combinations perhaps? With your knowledge of the subject it may make more sense to you than me.

I hope it helps,

Cheers,

Honza

AKPhilately · **Posted:** Sun Mar 18, 2012 07:44:49 am

Thanks very much for that, Honza!

I think it is slowly dawning on me. So basically new rejected sheets were swapped for old okay sheets, so that rejected sheets could be sold for a lot of money without the printers noticing anything because they would still have the right number of sheets.

By numbering each print run, you should be able to spot older sheets being thrown in with later ones, as older ones would for example only have numbers 1-2-3 and a later print run may have 1-2-3-4-5. That's clever!

As for the Nutzen: all I know is that four lettertypes exist. You can see that on the pic which I showed above. These were used all at the same time, so I assumed that maybe printed sheets consisted of four counter sheets, each with its own lettertype? Would that make sense compared to the German text?

The text then goes on to say that the place of each lettertype on the printed sheet (consisting of four counter sheets) changes per print run so it is no longer possible to identify whether a particular counter sheet or lettertype was printed top left, top right, bottom left or bottom right.

Wolfgang · **Posted:** Sun Mar 18, 2012 07:52:04 am

AKPhilately wrote:

As for the Nutzen: .... so I assumed that maybe printed sheets consisted of four counter sheets, each with its own lettertype? Would that make sense compared to the German text?

That is alright!

AKPhilately · **Posted:** Sun Mar 18, 2012 19:44:21 pm

Thanks, Wolfgang, for confirming that. I think the picture is clear enough for me now. All I need to do now is try and get some for my own collection!
And of course thanks once again Honza for your help too!


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Translation needed of German info on Austrian Symbolzahlen

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