All Smiles Over This Latest Steiff Teddy Baby Find!

Baby love! It's no secret that Steiff's wonderful prewar Teddy Baby bears and their novelties really float Steiffgal's boat. Like many Steiff enthusiasts, she simply cannot resist these dear cubs and their impish, carefree, and endearing personalities. And because of their unique construction, no two ever look exactly alike, only adding to their collectibility. Here's her latest adoption - a precious, pint sized cub with a distinctly old fashioned look and feel to him. It's hard to believe that he's nearly nine decades old despite his youthful name and appearance.

There's no question this is one beautiful baby. Teddy Baby is made from brown mohair, stands 17 cm tall, and is fully jointed. He has all of the beloved characteristics of Steiff's legacy Teddy Baby pattern: a distinctive, well defined muzzle; flat, broad, feet made for standing; downturned wrists; and sweet, toddler-like features and proportions. His irresistible face comes to life with an open, smiling mouth detailed with red (in his mouth) and brown (around his eyes and mouth) airbrushing; a black hand embroidered nose; and proportional brown and black glass pupil eyes placed right on the seam where his velvet and mohair facial fabrics come together. 

This smiling sweetie is also one well accessorized cub. He wears a red leather collar that is decorated with six dimensional metal studs, two long trailing "f" Steiff buttons, and a little brass bell. These wonderful and period compliments are all original to him, and are often lost to time. Teddy Baby retains his long trailing "f" Steiff button in ear and named chest tag with the words "ges. gesch" right under the words "Teddy Baby." "Ges. Gesch" is shorthand for "Gesetzlich Geschutzt." These German words translate roughly to the concept of a "trademark" as we have here in the USA. Teddy Baby examples with "ges. gesch" chest tags suggest that they were manufactured around 1930 or shortly after. It is Steiffgal's guess that the Teddy Baby under discussion here is a large 15 cm version, given his construction and detailing.

Keeping it all in the family, Steiffgal thought it would be fun to compare two versions of Steiff's 15 cm brown mohair prewar Teddy Baby bears - one with an open mouth and one with a closed mouth. Today's open mouth, standard line Teddy Baby bear debuted in 1930 and was produced in 9, 12, 13, 15, 20, 22, 25, 30, 35, 38, 40, 45, and 65 cm through 1943 overall. Steiff also made a closed mouth version of its brown mohair Teddy Baby bear. These were manufactured in 15, 20, 25, 30, 38, and 45 cm from 1929 through 1931 overall. Here are a few subtle design differences between the two cousins...

• Muzzle: The open mouth version has a velvet muzzle and the closed mouth version has a mohair muzzle.
• Hand pads: The open mouthed version has velvet hand pads and the closed mouth version has felt hand pads.
• Feet: The open mouthed version has all velvet feet and the closed mouth version has mohair feet and felt foot pads.
• Claws: The open mouthed version has painted foot claws and no hand claws, and the closed mouth version has black hand embroidered foot and hand claws. 

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on Steiff's 15 cm prewar brown Teddy Baby bears has been sweeter than chocolate!

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