pay phone story

Name	Zwietusch MFS33 coin payphone
Date	Made in Germany in 1933 but used in Greece in 1950. Possibly imported as a prototype.
Manufacturer	It was manufactured from 1933 by E. Zwietusch & Co. Telephon-Apparate-Fabrik for the Deutsche Reichspost.
Links	Münzfernsprecher 33 used in Germany With thanks to- https://collections.otegroupmuseum.gr

Zwietusch MFS33 coin payphone

This Zwietusch wall-mounted coin payphone was used in Greece around 1950. Manufactured in West Germany, it reflects the sophisticated, heavily engineered public telephones imported by the Greek OTE network after the Second World War. Its black-painted steel case contains the coin mechanism, with a slot above and return chute on the front. The rotary dial has Greek lettering, confirming its adaptation for local subscribers. A black Bakelite handset rests on a bronze switch hook and is secured by a flexible metal cord. Measuring approximately 40 by 27 by 16 centimetres, the telephone accepted OTE tokens rather than ordinary circulating coins.

In Germany, Zwietusch manufactured similar coin telephones for the Deutsche Reichspost, including the Ortsmünzfernsprecher 33 introduced in 1933. They were installed in public telephone boxes and provided mainly local calls. Users inserted a 10‑pfennig coin; during the 1950s, many surviving machines were modified to accept two 10‑pfennig coins. Zwietusch continued producing telephone equipment into the post-war period, increasingly under Siemens influence. However, this particular example—with Greek dial lettering and an OTE token—was probably manufactured or adapted specifically for Greece rather than used in Germany. German public installations were gradually replaced by long-distance-capable Bundespost payphones from the mid-1950s.