Since 1907, when the device made of Odenwald beech wood with its "self-closing" tensioning mechanism supported by three nails was registered with the Imperial Patent Office, it has enjoyed unbroken popularity. Then as now, it was the daily reading companion against almost all forms of disintegration and disorder: be it blowing away from the garden table or the presumptuous "restructuring" by family members. The manufacturer, which took out patents at the time, is now the oldest company in its sector still in existence in Germany.