The German backing Maine State synonymous with colourful type at the top (3,4)
I believe the answer is:
red hair
'state synonymous with colourful type at the top' is the definition.
I don't know anything about this answer so I cannot tell whether it can be defined by this definition.
'the german backing maine' is the wordplay.
'the german' becomes 'der' ('the' in German).
'backing' is a reversal indicator.
'maine' becomes 'hair' (I can't justify this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'der' backwards is 'red'.
'red'+'hair'='RED HAIR'
Can you help me to learn more?
I've seen this clue in The Irish Times.
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