MOLLENDORFF-Berlin Without Words

Horst von Möllendorff (26 April 1906 – 17 December 1992) was a German cartoonist who was “drafted” to work for the Nazis’ Animated Short industry.

After World War II, Berlin was divided into four quadrants, each controlled by the four occupying powers – German / English / Russian / French. Hence the title to this booklet and the introduction was repeated in each of these four languages.

To give you some understanding of the pages in this booklet; for several years after the War, Berlin experienced sever shortages, including a lack of food with starvation not being uncommon.

NOTE: This booklet is not really a story. I suppose – each page is technically a wordless story of (usually) 4 images – but as a whole they represent the grim reality of Berlin immediately post-war. Done with dry humour.

• Four titles of this book:
  • Berlin ohne Worte
  • Berlin without words
  • Берлин без слов
  • Berlin sans parols.
• Author and Illustrator: Horst von Möllendorff 
• Introduction: Aribert Wäscher, repeated in the languages of the 4 occupying powers.
• Date of publication: undated but generally accepted as 1947. The introduction states the cartoons were done 1945 to 1947 and I recall one copy sold with a handwritten dedication Christmas 1947.
• Publisher: Pontes Verlag (given the politics at the time, I am unclear as to whether this was a pseudonym or the publisher’s actual name).

• Place of publication: Berlin
• Printer: Pontes Verlag?
• Copyright: Artist?
• Dimensions: 17 x 13.5 cm
• Dust jacket: Yes. Very thin, probably acidic paper wraps around a very thin cover
• Binding: paperback with a dust jacket
• Language: German / English / Russian / French titles, etc
• Unpaginated
• Printed: printed recto except for the four (two page) introductions and the flower emerging from the overturned flowerpot on the back page.
• Edition: Trade only but the late reprint said only 2000 copies were made due to lack of paper.
• Description: 44 leaves

1960 Reprint

This book by the well-known Berlin caricaturist Horst von Möllendorff was published in 1947 with an edition of 2,000 copies due to the limited paper allocation. Apart from the dust jacket, this book appears unchanged.

Horst von Möllendorff drew this time as he experienced it. At that time he himself had no nails, no dry blanket and no soles under his shoes. The book is a document of its time. It shows that Berliners not only waited for bread, but also for art.

Horst von Möllendorff, born on April 26th, 1906, comes from an old family of officers. In 1783 the General Feidmarschall Joachim Wichart von Möllendorff became governor in Berlin.

Translated from the front inner flap of the 1960 reprint

For the most part, the 1960 edition appears unchanged from the 1947 edition. Differences from the earlier copy:

• Thin card cover has the same image as the 1947 DJ
• This DJ has BERLIN OHNE WORTE 1945 1947
  • DJ is glossy purple
  • back of DJ has another image with “1999 ?” printed under it. It is unclear as to what 1999 refers to.
  • Front of DJ has caricature of a smiling face (presumably a self-portrait of the artist)
• title page gives publisher info: Verlag Hans-Joachim Heidenreich; Berlin Meinerzhagen
• title page references the introduction and who wrote it
• the order of several pages is switched around