Graefe und Unzer

The history of the publishing house Gräfe und Unzer ( Graefe und Unzer ) began in 1722 with the opening of the "House of Books" (Haus der B ü cher) by a certain Gottfried Eckart. Later, in 1798, August Wilhelm Unzer became the owner of the store. In 1831, he sold his business to his son Otto and son-in-law Heinrich Graefe, a bookseller from Hamburg. Since January 2, 1832, the company has been called "Graefe und Unzer".

August Wilhelm Unzer, owner of the "house of books" from 1798 to 1931. Source: kenig.org

Heirich Graefe — August Unzer's son-in-law Heinrich Eduard Graefe, who owned the store together with Otto Unzer from 1832 to 1848, and then alone until 1867. Source: kenig.org

In 1896, Otto Paetsch (1876-1927) began working in the store as an apprentice. In 1902, he became a co-owner of the company, and in 1927, its sole owner. It was Paetsch’s work that was associated with the company’s economic rise: it became one of the largest publishing companies in Europe, and the Graefe und Unzer bookstore became the largest bookstore in Europe with the widest selection.

Grafe und Unzer Grafe und Unzer_back — A brief description of the Graefe und Unzer store from the back of a postcard: " Graefe und Unzer . House of Books. Königsberg, Paradeplatz, 6, opposite the University. The largest bookstore in Germany (4 floors), one of the landmarks of Königsberg. It was founded in 1722. Immanuel Kant lived in the house of the founder of the bookstore at the time when Herder* was his student."

At the celebrations dedicated to the 200th anniversary of Immanuel Kant (1924) at the Albertina University, Petsch gave a speech as a representative of the German Booksellers' Association and donated books worth 70,000 Reichsmarks to the university library.

The Graefe und Unzer bookstore was a unique landmark of Königsberg. In student jargon it was called "Gräfin Unzer" (Countess Unzer). Michael Wieck in his book "The Decline of Königsberg" writes about this store:

“I was very impressed by the university building, as well as the multi-story bookstore “Graefe und Unzer” – we called it “Grunzer” (grunzer is German for “to grunt”. – admin )

Grafe und Unzer Grafe und Unzer_Magazin — House of Books. Königsberg. Paradeplatz, 6. Opposite the University.

Koenigsberg_Count and Under — Book House

During the Third Reich, Graefe und Unzer continued to occupy one of the leading positions in the book publishing market. The publishing house printed, for example, many books by Agnes Miegel. For some reason, the publishing house's website presents its almost 300-year history very sparingly, and there is not a word about the period from 1933 to 1945.

Meanwhile, in 1944, during the August Allied bombing, the building where Graefe un Unzer was located was heavily damaged. In 1945, the publishing house moved to Bavaria, and since 1961 has been engaged in purely publishing activities, occupying a niche in printing products on the topic of home economics and cooking. Currently, Graefe und Unzer is based in Munich and is part of the Ganske publishing group.

The publishing house Graefe und Unzer also published postcards in the 1920s-1940s, among other things . The publishing house collaborated with good photographers, which is why the postcards of this publishing house were of high quality.

Altstadt at Pregel_Grafe and Unzer — The postcards from Graefe und Unzer always look like small photo masterpieces.

Identification of Graefe und Unzer postcards is not difficult, as the full name of the publisher and the logo were indicated on the back. In the lower right corner on the back of the postcards there was a two-digit letter code and an order number (for example, dK Nr. 59). All postcards issued by Graefe und Unzer known to the author were made using the "real photo" technique . The postcards have an unusual size: 105 by 148 mm.

Altstadt at Pregel_Grafe and Unzer_Back — The back of a postcard from Graefe und Unzer

* Johann Gottfried Herder (1744-1803) was a German writer, cultural historian, and representative of the Storm and Stress movement. He graduated from the theological faculty of the University of Königsberg. He attended a course in geography with Immanuel Kant.