Orbis - Typewriter - 1940-1950






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Orbis brand typewriter, manufactured in Germany in 1949, in excellent condition with minor signs of wear and age, steel body in black, dimensions 35 cm wide by 18 cm high by 40 cm deep, weight 10 kg, in working order with verification marks.
Description from the seller
The Orbis typewriter, produced in Germany in 1949.
It represents the immediate predecessor and prototype of the famous Olympia SM1 series.
The dispute over the name: After World War II, the employees of the original Olympia factory located in Erfurt (in the Soviet occupation zone) fled to West Germany. There they founded a new plant in Wilhelmshaven. The temporary brand: Because the rights to the name "Olympia" were still the subject of an international legal dispute with the party remaining in the East, the new Western company temporarily marketed its models under the name Orbis.
Once the legal case was resolved in favor of the Western factory at the end of 1949, production continued under the final brand Olympia, renaming this specific mechanical chassis as the legendary portable model SM1. For this reason, the pure Orbis models were produced in a limited run of only about 12,300 units.
Seller's Story
The Orbis typewriter, produced in Germany in 1949.
It represents the immediate predecessor and prototype of the famous Olympia SM1 series.
The dispute over the name: After World War II, the employees of the original Olympia factory located in Erfurt (in the Soviet occupation zone) fled to West Germany. There they founded a new plant in Wilhelmshaven. The temporary brand: Because the rights to the name "Olympia" were still the subject of an international legal dispute with the party remaining in the East, the new Western company temporarily marketed its models under the name Orbis.
Once the legal case was resolved in favor of the Western factory at the end of 1949, production continued under the final brand Olympia, renaming this specific mechanical chassis as the legendary portable model SM1. For this reason, the pure Orbis models were produced in a limited run of only about 12,300 units.
