Hi Stephen !
»»» I would like to know what Swiss motorcycle license plates from the 1950's look like. «««
As far as I know, and in regard to the old plate holder I've got, the rear swiss motorcycle licence plates from the 50s where about the same size as the one in use by now (if anybody is best informed, please coorect me).
Rectangular, near square, with round corner.
Let me few days to give you exact metric size.
Blak characters and digits on a white background.
The plate is made of aluminium sheet metal with embossing for flags, characters, and digits.
On the 50s, flags, characters and digits, where of a bigger size, and of an older font type then it's now.
Also the backgroud was white painted insteed of the modern reflective white material used actualy.
Some 50 cc light motorcycles, such as «Kreidler Florett», get a jelow background licence plate when single sited, and a white one when double sited. The jelow plate is cheaper, but it's not alowed to ride on the motorway (freeway) with it.
There is two rows on the rear swiss motorcycle licence plates.
Top row :
- Left : swiss flag on a shield shape, red and white colored.
- Center : set of two alphabetical characters for the canton, that's the state. (There was 25 set of characters in the 50s, 19 for cantons, and 6 for half-cantons. There is 26 now, since Jura splited from Bern in 1981, and get it's own status as a canton. ... And there my eventualy be one more in the future, if the minority of separatists savoyrards succed in there independance claim (that is spliting from France and joining the Helvetic Confederation). But I guess, it's not for tomorow.)
- Right flag of the canton, same size and shape as the swiss one, but colored according to each canton's colors.
Botom row :
- Center the plate number it-self.
»»» Do Swiss plates always indicate the Canton of issue ? «««
No, there is some (rare) exeptions to it. I know tree of them :
- The vehicles of the swiss administration.
On top row, the swiss flag's on left, like canton's plates, but there's a «A» (for administration) characterr on the right, noting in center.
The plate number is centered on botom row, like others.
- The vehicles of the swiss Post.
Like the swiss administration, but with a «P» (for Post) insteed of a «A».
- The vehicles of the swiss Army.
Like the swiss administration, but with a «M» (for Military), and the background is of a kind of dark grey, and the characters is light grey, both mat colors.
On the past there used to be front plate of the «pedestrian-slicer» type, but I think these where gived up, and rather forbiden, long before the 50s.
There was only the canton and the number on the front plate, no flags.
It's worth to mention that on contrary to must countries, the swiss licence plate is attributed to the owner of the bike (or of the car), and not to the vehicle it-self. That is, when one sell it's motorcycle and buy a new one, he keep it's licence plate, an put it on the new bike.
So, a persone may keep the same licence plate for all it's life.
And, in top of all, he's allowed to legate it to his, or her, son or daughter !
Other peculiarity, a owner may use the same plate for two motorcycles,
providing, of course, he ride only one at a time.
»»» Even by the standards of Mark's website, these are esoteric questions I guess? «««
I don't think so !
But for more autorised advice, you can also post your question on the web site of the «Swiss Freinds of old Motorcycles»'s association :
www.fam-amv.ch
Hope it'll help,
sincerly yours,
damien