Begging For More Information On This Remarkable Steiff Bonzo With All IDs!

Here's one "bucket list" Steiff item most enthusiasts would get on their hands and knees to add to their collection! Check out this truly remarkable velvet begging Bonzo dog from 1927 - with all IDs! Steiffgal's pal Daniel Agnew, of Special Auction Services in the UK, will be auctioning it off as part of his June 9, 2016 sales event. The full catalog for this exciting event will be online in the next week or so.  In the meantime, let's check out this top dog and see what makes him so desirable from the design and historical perspectives.

This comical canine, lot 848 in the upcoming sale, is cataloged as...

"An extremely rare Steiff Begging Bonzo 1927, of cream velvet, clear glass eyes with dark pink and light pink backs, red felt tongue, black velvet right rear, swivel head, jointed limbs, painted and airbrushed facial features and paw pads, inoperative squeaker, original red leather collar with white card tag with metal rim ‘Begging Bonzo Steiff Original’ one side and ‘Germany Copyright G.E. Studdy’ to the reverse, FF button with complete red tag numbered 5417 - 9in. (23cm.) high (very slightly discoloured and stomach seam resewn) - According to Steiff 115 examples of Bonzo was made in eight sizes, all were unsold as G. E. Studdy did not like their samples and the license went with to the Chad Valley version. Seven examples in different sizes are retained in the Steiff archive, but it is not known what happened to the others. Steiff went onto produce a similar looking character dog which they called Cheerio £10,000-£15,000"

This Bonzo is truly in a class by itself... almost! It is only the second one ever that Steiffgal personally has seen go up for sale, and the first ever in this size. In 2010, Christie's in London sold a 27 cm version with all IDs for £16,250 or $25,724! This Christie's example had his red Steiff tag numbered "5422," meaning 5=jointed, 4=velvet, and 22=22 cm sitting. This big boy appears here on the left; the photo is from Christie's.

Although Bonzo never "officially" made the Steiff line, he did make a little known appearance in another rare novelty pattern of the time. Bonzo was produced as a "Bonzoette," which was a very long limbed, dressed version of his design. These items were called "car and play" dolls or "Charleston Animals," based on the Charleston dance craze of the 1920’s, with its fast moving arm and leg movements. Other "play and car dolls" included Bulliette, the bulldog, Fluffiette, the cat, and Rabbiette, the rabbit. Each doll had the head of the character, mohair or velvet paws and feet, and dangling velvet limbs. Most were available in several bright, happy "jelly bean" colors and in 20, 30, and 43 cm, with the larger sizes having a squeaker. Bonzo was made in 30 and 43 cm in blue or orange in 1928 only and is arguably the rarest of all of these "play and car" dolls. These long legged Steiff novelties appeared overall in the line from 1927 through 1932. A picture of Bonzoette appears on the left, it is taken from Pfeiffer's 1892-1943 Sortiment Book. 

As noted in the cataloging above, Bonzo is in part responsible for the design and introduction of another late 1920's Steiff rarity, Cheerio the Puppy. This pattern is known for his todder-esque appearance, huge eyes, open mouth, and happy-go-lucky personality. Several versions were produced. A begging version was manufactured in 17, 22, and 28 cm from 1928 though 1931. Begging Cheerio was also made as a press and release music pup in 22 and 28 cm from 1928 through 1930. Cheerio was also manufactured standing on all fours in 10, 14, 17, 22, and 28 cm from 1928 through 1932. Standing Cheerio also appeared as a press and release music box in 17 and 22 cm from 1928 through 1930. And, like Bonzo, Cheerio was also produced as a "car and play doll." "Cheerioette" appeared in the line 30 and 43 cm from 1928 through 1931.  A begging Cheerio, from Steiffgal's collection, is pictured here on the left. 

Be sure to check out Daniel's amazing Steiff Bonzo, and other Steiff and Teddy treasures, at the upcoming SAS toy auction event on June 9th, 2016.  For more information on this sale, please click here!

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on Steiff's fantastic and really rare Bonzo dog has gotten your tail a'wagging!

Have a question about one of your Steiff treasures? Let's talk! Click here to learn more.

Color Your World With This Mysterious Vintage Steiff Donkey

It's a rather gray day around these parts, and the almost four feet (that's over 120 cm for friends abroad!) of snow on the ground already is not helping things.  But this little grayish friend is just the opposite of gloomy - so Steiffgal thought it would be the perfect time to introduce you to this happy-go-lucky fellow.  Take a look at this fantastic vintage farm friend who just arrived on the east coast from Germany.  Although not technically "young" anymore - he is certainly young at heart... and will warm yours, too!

Here we have a most adorable and vintage looking donkey.  This farm friend measures 22 cm tall (top of head to foot) and 30 cm long (tip of nose to backside.)  He is standing, unjointed, and made of tan mohair which has been lovingly airbrushed with grayish-purple highlights.  His tail and mane are made from long, soft, black mohair.   His face comes to life with longer tan mohair on his "sideburns" and forehead, a shorter mohair muzzle, pert black eyes, and a black airbrushed nose and mouth.  The coloring on his face truly gives him him a youthful, playful appearance.  He retains his long trailing "F" button and illegible yellow ear tag (pictured below) as his Steiff IDs.  

Like many things Steiff, this donkey has details that make him hard to date and identify with 110% accuracy.  His long trailing "F" button initially suggests that he may have been manufactured in the c. 1933 - 1935 time period.  If that were the case, he most resembles the company's Jung Esel or Young Donkey, which was made in 22 and 28 cm from 1933 through 1943 overall.  Young Donkey is pictured here on the left; the photo is from Pfeiffer's 1892-1943 Sortiment book.  Like the example under discussion today, Steiff's Young Donkey pattern is famous for his grey-purple highlights and innocent looks.  However, it is clear that there are some key differences between the Young Donkey pattern and the donkey under discussion here.  Young Donkey is made from long grey wool plush; this example is made from highlighted mohair.  Young Donkey has grey felt (or perhaps leather) hooves; this example does not.  Young Donkey has a grey tail and mane; this example has black detailing.  And Young Donkey has his ears positioned forward; this example has the ears positioned to the rear.   

So how do his design elements and early IDs all align?  Well, only this donkey knows for sure, but here are two ideas.  

1.  The mid 1930's through the early 1950's were a really rough time for manufacturing at Steiff, and supplies and fabrics were available on an inconsistent basis.  It is possible that this donkey was indeed made to the Jung Esel pattern as best as possible, but with the materials and technology available on hand, in the late 1930's to early 1940's.  It is not unusual to see wool plush and mohair plush interchanged on items from this time frame.  

2.  Steiffgal thinks it's more probable - given his distinctive overall coloring - that this donkey under discussion today is a transitional model between the company's pre- and post- war donkey models.  As such, he may have been produced in the very late 1940's and given a long trailing "F" button... as that's what was on hand at the time.   Steiff launched its post-war donkey in 1950 in 12, 14, 22, and 28 cm; this updated pattern has several design elements of the pre-war Jung Esel, especially in the muzzle area, but no purple-grey highlights at all.   For comparison, a nice example of Steiff's postwar 22 cm mohair donkey is pictured here on the left.

Steiffgal hopes this discussion of this mystery donkey has added a touch of color to your day!

Have a question about one of your Steiff treasures? Let's talk! Click here to learn more.  

Care To Play Sherlock Holmes With A Few Steiff Mystery Items?

Would you agree turn-about is fair play?  Well, Steiffgal's beloved readers usually come to her to solve Steiff mysteries.  Now she's looking for their assistance!  Steiffgal has recently acquired three most unusual Steiff items, but doesn't seem to be able to find out any history or background about them.  Can you help?  If so, please send any information to her at Steifflife@gmail.com - and she will post your insights on the blog, so we all can learn about these oddities.  

It's easy to get right to the point with this first item.  Here we has a Steiff branded name badge.  The tag itself is made of white plastic and is constructed like a frame; one can slide their name into the double walled portion of its midsection.  It measures 7 cm long by 2-3/4 cm high, and is about 4 mm thick.  The front is yellow with the Steiff Teddy bear head logo and "button in ear" tag line in red, with the words "Advice on Steiff available from" also in red.  The reverse is white, and has a safety style pin for securing the badge to a shirt or blouse.  The writing on the back reads:

B. H. Meyer's 
Kunstpraegeanstalt 
Turnplatz 2 Postfach 1266
7530 Pforzheim

It is interesting to note that the badge was made in Pforzheim, which is a town of about 120,000 residents in the state of Baden-Württemberg, in southwest Germany. Pforzheim is 90 minutes west of Giengen, the home of the Steiff company. Meyer has been in business since the late 1800's, and is best known for producing custom minted coins, medallions, and ingots. Perhaps plastic molded items are, or were, other lines of business for the Meyer Company.

So, without naming any names, do any readers recognize this ID badge as something you saw a salesperson wear at a toy or department store years ago?  If so, when, and where...?  And why is it in English, when clearly it was manufactured in Germany?  

OK, let's come clean with this next fabulous albeit cryptic Steiff treasure.  What we have here is a box of Steiff branded Teddy bear soaps in a yellow-orange corrugated cardboard box.  The box itself is 17 cm long x 6-1/2 cm wide by 4-1/2 cm tall.  The container, which has a red and yellow die-cut Steiff logo on the top, is lined in shreds of red paper, most likely to cushion the soaps.  There are three bear soaps in the box; they are sitting and 5-1/2 cm tall each.  There is a cream colored one, a mocha colored one, and a yellow one.  The mocha one has a red and yellow split style paper chest tag bearing the word "soap" where the name of the animal usually is placed.  There is a sticker on the back of the box, entirely in Japanese, that seems to suggest that there are three soaps in the box, each weighing 45 grams; this sticker is pictured here on the left.

So wonderful readers - especially those in Japan - can you scrub your minds and tell us ANYTHING that bubbles up about these Steiff soaps?  

And finally, let's get write to today's last Steiff mystery item.  Here we have what appears to be a child's stationery set emblazoned with a delightful scene of a horse drawn carriage overflowing with our favorite Steiff characters.  The fun includes Sheddy pony, Jumbo elephant, Tulla goose, Lora parrot, Pieps mouse, Dangling frog, Cosy Teddy, Dangling Tom cat, Clownie, a woolen bird and ladybug, Nagy beaver, Cosy fox, Lucki dwarf, a mohair hen and rooster, Cosy calf, blue tit bird, and a goldfinch bird.

Hold everything!  The set is contained within a 19 cm tall by 19 cm long square white cardboard storage envelope.  Within the big envelope are 10 small white mailing envelopes with green linings, and 10 sheets of kid-sized stationary featuring the same illustration that is on the front of the big envelope.  On the back of the big envelope, it reads:

Schreibe spielend
Writing is play
Ecrire est un jeu
Schrijf spelenderwijs

The first statement is in German, the second in English, the third in French, and the fourth is in Dutch - clearly suggesting that this stationery set was made for the global marketplace.  The back of the folder is also imprinted with what appears to be the logo of the manufacturer - Heyder - the code P 417, and the words, "Made in Western Germany."

Given the cast of characters featured in the illustration, it would be safe to say that this stationery set probably was made in the early 1970's.  

Dear readers - can anyone provide any more details on this sweet Steiff stationery set?  Do you perhaps recall having one as a child?  Any information, even a back of the envelope calculation, would be most appreciated!

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on mysterious Steiff items has brought out the Sherlock Holmes in you!

Have a question about one of your Steiff treasures, family or otherwise? Let's talk! Click here to learn more.