Original Item: Only One Available.This is a fascinating original German pre-WWII/WWII porcelain soup plate bearing the distinctive markings of the Waried Tankschiff Rhederei G.m.b.H., the Hamburg tanker company that owned the German tanker SS Gedania. According to the extensive provenance and historical research accompanying the plate, this example is attributed as having been recovered from Gedania, which was taken into German naval service as an Atlantic supply tanker before being captured by the British vessel HMS Marsdale on June 4, 1941.

The plate itself is an excellent piece of German maritime service china. Applied prominently to the upper rim is the WARIED name above the company's attractive house-flag emblem, consisting of black, white, and red panels with a red letter R at center. Below this is the company designation:

TANKSCHIFF RHEDEREI G.m.b.H.

The German term refers to the tanker shipping company, while G.m.b.H. is the abbreviation for Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung, roughly equivalent to a limited-liability company.

The underside is clearly marked in green with the distinctive FELDA / RHÖN trademark incorporating an airplane. This mark is associated with the Porzellanfabrik Stadtlengsfeld A.G. of Stadtlengsfeld, Thuringia. This particular FELDA RHÖN airplane trademark dates to the 1930s and wartime period, with the mark registered in 1933 and documented in specialist references as being used through approximately 1945.

The plate remains in very good condition for a piece of shipboard porcelain approximately nine decades old. The white glazed surface presents very well, and the Waried company insignia remains particularly attractive, retaining strong black and red coloration.

SS Gedania and the German Atlantic Supply Network

Originally constructed as a commercial tanker, Gedania had a long prewar career before being incorporated into Germany's wartime maritime supply system. After spending part of the early war period at Las Palmas in the Canary Islands, Gedania was taken over by German naval authorities in 1940 and subsequently sent to St. Nazaire, on the German-occupied French Atlantic coast. There she underwent extensive conversion for use as an ocean-going supply tanker.

British interrogation reports compiled after her capture describe modifications that included additional storerooms, refrigeration facilities, ammunition storage, improved navigation and direction-finding equipment, defensive armament, and space for carrying prisoners. Her complement reportedly totaled approximately 101 men, including both merchant personnel and German naval personnel.

More importantly, Gedania was equipped to support German naval operations far from European bases. When captured, British investigators recorded an extraordinary supply load that included 48 torpedoes, torpedo components and lubricants, ammunition for several calibers of naval weapons, engineering equipment, radio equipment, fuel, and extensive quantities of food and stores.

Her immediate mission was principally the replenishment of German submarines operating in the Atlantic, particularly through the delivery of fuel and torpedoes to the so-called “Southern U-Boats.” For this reason, Gedania is more accurately described as a Kriegsmarine supply tanker or U-boat replenishment ship rather than a conventional U-boat tender.

An especially interesting element of Gedania's history is her possible connection with the famous battleship Bismarck and heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen during the opening phase of the German Atlantic campaign.

Captured members of Gedania's crew told British interrogators that they believed the tanker might have been called upon to rendezvous with Bismarck and Prinz Eugen if required. This information is documented in the book The War at Sea 1939–1945 by Captain S. W. Roskill, Volume I, The Defensive, published in London in 1954. The possibility of such a rendezvous must be understood in the context of Germany's preparations for commerce warfare in the North Atlantic. A battleship and heavy cruiser operating far from French or German bases required substantial quantities of fuel, provisions, lubricants, ammunition, and technical stores. Supply tankers such as Gedania were intended to extend the endurance of German warships and submarines by allowing them to remain at sea for prolonged periods without returning to port.

Capture by HMS Marsdale – June 4, 1941

Gedania's first operational supply cruise proved to be her last under German control.

On June 4, 1941, she was intercepted in the North Atlantic by the British Ocean Boarding Vessel HMS Marsdale, at approximately 43°38′ N, 28°15′ W. The German crew attempted to prevent the vessel from falling intact into British hands, but Gedania was successfully boarded and captured.

Rather than being sunk, she was taken as a prize and subsequently entered British service under the name Empire Garden.

Her capture came during an intensive Royal Navy campaign against the network of German tankers and supply ships operating across the Atlantic. These vessels were vital to German submarines and surface raiders because they allowed warships to remain at sea considerably longer without returning to occupied Europe.

Documents and other material recovered from captured German vessels during this period also contributed to British naval intelligence efforts.

An Exceptional Provenance Group

What makes this particular plate especially desirable is the accompanying historical documentation. Included with the plate is a substantial research packet assembled around its association with Gedania. Most notable is correspondence dated December 30, 1987, from Captain George Q. Parnell, Master Mariner and President of G.Q. Parnell Marine Surveyors Inc., specifically discussing the “Waried” soup plate in connection with Gedania.

The group also contains photocopied extracts from shipping registers and historical publications concerning the vessel, her ownership, her wartime employment, and German supply ships operating with surface raiders and U-boats.