This commemorative postage block honors two major milestones in zoological history: the 150th birthday of Carl Hagenbeck and the 150th anniversary of the Berlin Zoo. Issued by the Deutsche Bundespost on May 5, 1994, the block features a first-day-of-issue cancellation from Bonn.
The official Ersttagsblatt (ETB 15/1994) provides a detailed look at these two legacies:
Carl Hagenbeck (1844–1913)
Born in Hamburg, Hagenbeck revolutionized animal training with his "gentle training" method based on rewards rather than punishment.
He is credited with inventing the barless enclosure, which allowed animals to be viewed in recreations of their natural habitats, a concept patented in 1896.
In 1907, he opened the world's first barless zoo in Stellingen, Hamburg.
The Berlin Zoo (Founded 1844)
Opened on August 1, 1844, the zoo was established through the initiative of Prof. Martin Hinrich Lichtenstein and supported by King Friedrich Wilhelm IV.
Despite being nearly destroyed during WWII—with only 91 out of over 10,000 animals surviving—the zoo was rebuilt under the leadership of its first post-war director, Dr. Katharina Heinroth.
