Bidspirit auction | Postcard of the Berghof, Obersalzberg

Postcard of the Berghof, Obersalzberg - ”Wohnraum” - A color-printed postcard titled ”Der Berghof Obersalzberg - Wohnraum”, showing an interior living room view with a tiled stove, wood-paneled walls, corner bench seating, and a dining table. The verso carries a handwritten message in ink, a postage stamp, a Berlin postal cancellation dated 31.1.43, and a printed ”Kriegswinterhilfswerk 1942/1943” charity postmark. A small maker's mark for Vitacolor appears in a lower corner of the address side. The Berghof was Adolf Hitler's residence on the Obersalzberg near Berchtesgaden, and postcards depicting its interior were produced commercially for public sale during the Third Reich period; this example was mailed during wartime, as evidenced by the winter relief fund postmark and 1943 dated cancellation. The Berghof served as Adolf Hitler's Alpine residence and a frequent venue for receiving foreign dignitaries and holding informal state business, making it a key site of Nazi propaganda imagery presenting a domesticated, ”private” image of the regime's leadership. Commercially produced postcards of its interiors, such as this ”Wohnraum” view, were part of a wider tourism and propaganda industry surrounding the Obersalzberg complex before and during the war. The Kriegswinterhilfswerk (War Winter Relief Fund) postmark reflects the annual state-sponsored charity drive collecting donations for needy Germans during the winter months, a scheme heavily promoted through propaganda channels throughout the war years. The 1943 cancellation places this card's use during a period when Germany's military fortunes had begun to turn following the defeat at Stalingrad.