International parcel despatch document (Paketkarte / Bulletin d’expédition), numbered 3779 and originating at München 3, accompanying a parcel addressed to Biel/Bienne, Switzerland. The document retains its German postage franking and, importantly, a Swiss “Zoll-Quittung” (Customs Receipt) attached to the front.
The parcel entered Swiss postal-customs processing at Romanshorn, where both the despatch document and customs receipt were struck “ROMANSHORN Postzoll” on 17th January 1934. The receipt records 1.80 Swiss francs in charges. A further Lindau i. B. marking provides evidence of its movement through the Lake Constance frontier area before Swiss customs treatment. Romanshorn had developed into an important transport centre on Lake Constance, connected with international postal and transport routes.
The item is particularly suitable for the Brief History Customs section because the surviving Paketkarte, customs receipt and Postzoll markings demonstrate the practical interaction between the German Reichspost and Swiss customs/postal authorities in handling an international parcel during 1934. The underlying principle remains recognisable in Swiss postal customs today: goods arriving from abroad must be declared and undergo customs clearance, with the postal carrier handling the customs process from the sender's declaration. Featuring stamps Mi.414 - 15pf (first issued Sept. 1928), Mi.422 - 80pf (first issued Sept.1928), Mi. 468 - 5pf (first issed Oct.1932), and Mi.472 - 40pf (first issued Oct. 1932). Ref: 17.01.1934 - 1/4