** TINS of TASTE MUSEUM ** within the NationalBreadMuseum.org
GERMANY - Gebr. Seim Lebkuchen
All sorts of symbols have been used on Seim's tins through the years. Some represent government regulations, or marks of a quality product, or a logo specific to the identify of Seim as a Lebkuchen company.
It's not known if tins of Lebkuchen or even Lebkuchen itself are still produced under the Gebr. Seim name. (Gebr. is short for Gebrüder; means "brothers.") A website search states that the company (in name at least) has been owned by Lambertz (of Aachen, Germany) since 1998.
When I first saw this tin a few years back, I was ecstatic after I translated the story on the back. Here I was in my mid-70s and I had never heard of this man, even after having studied so many history books 10-20 years ago while our youngest son when through high school and college, getting a secondary history degree! When I grew up on the farm, I couldn't give two hoots about history, as it wasn't relative to milking cows from age 6 on, & doing the other farm chores. BUT, after having a chance to gradually travel throughout this entire country (all but 2 states), & several dozen countries on 5 continents, that yearning for "wishing & then wanting to know" kicked in!!! It's all so meaningful to what we have today & the directions in which our country, & others, are going.
So in my mind I know most of the globe like the back of my hand, but it never occurred to me that there was a specific person's identity to the formation of the globe itself. I've used 100s & 100s of maps through my years traveling, & just figured the globe evolved out of all the navigation maps created by, & because of, a dozen-or-so explorers I can still recite from grade school. So the information on this tin, and the gorgeous, colorful art work is priceless. It's the main reason why the tins are so significant - - they are invaluable textbooks.
A bit of a side note: A special blessings with this tin is that a family member was in Germany 2 years ago. It was the first time I had ever seen this tin, so I bought on the German eBay & it was sent to the university, but never delivered! Eventually it ended back with the seller & I've not had anyone else since then as a connection in Germany. I told the seller to go ahead and resell it because it's always the chance I take. But he hung on to it, just in case. By this Christmas he said he was sending it to me as a Christmas gift because there was no one else he knew of who would appreciate this tin more than me 😉🧡, so now I get to share it with the world 🙏. With deep gratitude to R.S. in Berlin! Many thanks.
So here we go . . . Martin Behaim . . . 1459 - 1507 . . . only 48 years of life.
"The young Nuremberg cloth merchant's son acquired all the knowledge of the world and celestial studies of the time from the well-known, learned/scholar Regiomontanus. On a trading trip he entered the service of the King of Portugal and in 1485 looked for a sea route to India along the western coast of Africa.
"He recorded his travel experiences - visiting Nuremberg - on a globe; This is how the first terrestrial globe was created.
The benefit of Martin Behaim's nautical knowledge, maps, and equipment was also Christoph Kolumbus', who was the first to seek the sea route to India westward across the open sea in 1492 and discovered America in the process." (P.S. NOTE: "America" didn't mean the land of the United States, but of the N-S American continents.)
A note to keep in mind while archiving, and still discovering old Lebkuchen companies and the history of them, is that Seim had a large chest (similar in size to the Otto Schmidt {Lebkuchen-Schmidt name today}, Festive Chest) with the 747/4 series number on the back rim of the cover. I have one for this Tins of Taste Museum (to photograph & add to this page someday), but there also must have been 747/1-3 chests! Maybe they'll appear one day 🙂. Donna Kozak, Founder
The following 6-Stuck (rhymes with spook) tin was purchased here in the U. S. Amazingly it still had an import sticker on the cover. A website search says that a Martin Berg Import Co. began in 1961. Today it's listed in Warren, Michigan, as a confectionery and candy company. So figuring it's the same company, this tin would be dated either 1961 or 1962 because there's no zip code in the Michigan address. The Christmas holiday season for 1961-'62 was before the Zip Code which began in July of 1963.
