GERMAN TYPEWRITTER RIBBON CASE MADE OF BAKELITE FOR A TRIUMPH TYPEWRITTER

This is an original 1940's bakelite box that holds typewriter ribbon for the Triumph Typewriter.  

As written on the top of the circular ribbon holder:  TRIUMPH MATURA BUROBEDARF (OFFICE SUPPLIES) DIETZ WIESBADEN RUF 25386.

There is no typewriter included.

Triumph typewriters began with Siegfried Bettmann, a man who had a knack of surrounding himself with top-line designers, whether it be for his typewriters or his motorcycles and bicycles.
Born in Nuremberg on April 18, 1863 he moved to Coventry England in 1883.  He started his own business, German Biesolt and Locke sewing machine and to export British bicycles overseas and to Germany.  In 1986 he made another deal to sell Andrews bicycles overseas labelled under the Bettman name.  

In the 1870’s Bettmann then changed the name of the company from S.Bettmann and Company  to the Triumph Cycle Company Limited.

In 1896, with his British business booming, Bettmann returned to his home city of Nuremberg to set up a German branch, Deutsche Triumph Fahrradwerke Aktiengesellschaft.  Bettmann was also able to take over a typerwriter company in Germany called Kührt and Riegelman GmbH, who made the well known Norica typewritter.  Siegfried Bettmann continued to make the Norica, but luck would have it he was able to acquire one of the greatest typewriter designers, Paul Grützmann, who designed for Bettmann a new machine, called the Triumph.

In 1911 Bettmann changed the name of the company again, this time to Triumph Werke Nürnberg AG, and started exporting to Russia, Italy and Argentina. 

In 1913, this company broke free of its English parent organisation. This changed the logo slightly as one may notice that with the Triumph typewriter logo, the stroke goes across the top from the T, whereas with British motorbikes, the stroke comes from the R below the brand name, Triumph.

After World War I, Triumph continued to prosper. By 1921 it was making 3000 typewriters a year and in 1925 it won a contract with the German Postal Service.