Have you ever felt really good about a Steiff purchase? Well, Steiffgal recently has - in more ways than one! Check out this marvelous, and marvelously dressed, Steiff monkey on wheels. There's no question you'll enjoy the ride!
This early 20th century Steiff "Record Peter" is the wheel-deal. First let's talk about the chimp. He is fully jointed, made entirely from felt, and is stuffed with excelsior. He measures 20 cm tall sitting, not including his cart. His face, hands, and feet are made from brown and dark tan felt. His body is made from red felt and is designed as if he's wearing a one-piece outfit that is integral to his design. It is decorated with a large, scalloped edged collar. The edges of his collar and outfit are trimmed in yellow floss. His face comes to life with black shoe button eyes, seams to indicate his nose and mouth, and a little pink and black paint highlighting. His proper-topper is a removable red felt fez with a black tassel. It is absolutely amazing that he still retains this accessory probably a century or more after he left the factory in Giengen, Germany! Felt Record Peter retains his tiny, long trailing "F" button-in-ear as his Steiff ID.
Rolling along, let's take a look at his fine ride. The carriage itself is made out of metal and is painted black. It glides along on four natural colored wooden wheels. The monkey does not actually "sit" directly on anything; he is mounted to the carriage via his backside and legs. This configuration allows his torso to move back and forth when the cart is pulled along. He holds the cart handle with both of his hands; his fingers have been sewn into place to hold this grip position. His "seat" is a red painted wooden rectangle that also doubled as a "squeaker" when he was new. The up and down motion of the wheels would have caused the bellows on the bottom of the wooden seat to let out a little noise with each rotation. Overall, this fantastic felt monkey on the go appeared in the line in 20 and 25 cm from 1913 through 1938.
Let's dig a little deeper into the record of this legacy Steiff design. “Record” refers to a Steiff item on an "Irish Mail Cart" style vehicle, while “Peter” is the name of the monkey design. Steiff introduced its "Record" range of products in 1912, starting with an all brown mohair chimp on wheels. This "newfangled" design proved extremely popular. Record-style Teddy bears, rabbits, and dolls, including Max and Moritz, appeared in the catalog soon after. Over time, even Mickey Mouse and Felix the Cat were made in "Record" form! Like Record Peter under discussion here today, each of these wonderful Steiff novelties rode upon a black metal, four-wheeled cart with a handle. When any Steiff "Record" item was rolled about, his arms and torso would pump back and forth vigorously, giving the appearance that he was working hard to keep his cart moving.
And finally, picture this. You can see red felt Record Peter's debut image here above. You can click on it to make it bigger. The photo is taken from an original Steiff catalog for the American market dated 1913. At the time, the 20 cm version cost $1.50 and the 25 cm version cost $2.00. In 2019 dollars, that's the equivalent of $38.52 and $51.35.
Steiffgal hopes you found this discussion on this rare felt Record Peter quite moving.
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