1940 · Kriegsmarine M3 · Werk 449 von 1.871

A naval cipher machine in its wooden case with the removable top lid lifted off, a row of three cipher rotors side by side under a lockable rotor cover, the rotor rims engraved with a ring of capital letters, a lampboard of small round windows each bearing a single capital letter, a keyboard below with each key cap bearing a single capital letter, a plugboard of sockets in alphabetical rows at the front, a printed slip clipped inside the lid showing only blank ruled columns, beads of condensation on the metal rotor cover and hinges, the machine on a steel shelf in a cramped ship compartment, a single caged bulb above at an angle, rivets and grey painted steel behind fading into darkness.
Jeder Verweis nennt seine Art. „Vorläufer“ allein wäre eine Behauptung.