My Favorite Martian - Steiff Style!

So what's the wackiest thing in your Steiff collection? Beauty is definitely in the eye of the beholder, and Steiffgal would bet there are as many answers to this question as there are collectors. Here's one oddity from Steiffgal's hug that just may put you in orbit with his weirdness. Take a look at this mystery Martian and see what makes him so "out there" from the design and product development perspectives.

It's probably very easy being green when it comes to this "space cadet." This majorly-toothed Martian is Steiff's Gruenes Maennchen, or Little Green Man. He is 35 cm tall and made from green colored trevira velvet. His proportions are much like the company's iconic "lulac" style animals, with their long torsos and dangling limbs. His arms and legs have wire armature so they can be posed in playful ways. 

Gruenes Maennchen's face is utterly charming. He has enormous black and white googly eyes, one thick black strand of "hair" (or possibly an antenna) on his forehead, pert ears, a prominent bulbous nose, and an open mouthed ear-to-ear grin. And of course... a huge set of white felt buck teeth. According to the Sortiment, he appeared in the lie from 1982-1984, and that perfectly aligns with his IDs, body shape, and materials.

Like life on other planets, there isn't alot known about this "Man from Mars." Physically, this guy has some similar body characteristics to Steiff's Steiff's Cappy Schlenkerfrosch, or Cappy Dangling Frog. Cappy also is "lulac" styled with his long unjointed arms and legs and internal wire armature. He is also made from green trevira velvet. This "hoppy" friend is 32 cm and appeared in the Steiff line from 1979 through 1984. You can see Cappy posing here on the left. Gruenes Maennchen also shares a few characteristics with Steiff's 35 cm, open mouthed, google-eyed green trevira velvet Hand Dragon puppet. This silly sweetie was made in 1991 for the Oldenburg publishing house. Oldenburg, which is now part of the De Gruyter group, is headquartered in Berlin; its company history spans more than 260 years. You can see this puppet below here on the left. 

We do know for sure that Gruenes Maennchen was designed by the European author and illustrator Pat Malette. Malette wrote a number of popular books charmingly illustrated with these "little green men" in the 1980s. It is possible that Malette's adorable, quirky alien caught the eye of the Steiff design team who decided to bring it to life, Steiff style!  

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on her strange alien Gruenes Maennchen, or Little Green Man, has grounded your day just a bit. 

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

Just Who Is This Cunning Little Vixen?

It's easier to solve a mystery when you have material evidence at hand. And such is the case with today's Steiff conundrum. Check out this sweet, albeit sly, little gal. She's clearly a fox made by Steiff. But she does not appear in any reference books Steiffgal can find, and something about her is quite unusual. Read on to learn more.

This foxy friend is 12 cm, sitting, and unjointed. She is made from dralon and mohair; tan dralon on most of her body and tail, white dralon on her chest, and mohair on her muzzle. Her ears are lined in peach colored trivera velvet. She has lost her button, but has a small hole in her ear where it once resided. The backs of her ears, her feet, and her back are highlighted with black airbrushing. Her pensive face comes to life with brown and black pupil eyes, a black hand embroidered nose and mouth, and a bit of black airbrushing to highlight her eyes.

So just what makes this fox a cunning little vixen? She certainly has a strong resemblance to Steiff's beloved Xorry Desert fox pattern. This sitting, unjointed fox was made in 12 and 17 cm from 1957 through 1970. Xorry Desert fox is different than the company's standing, unjointed Xorry fox, which was produced in 11, 18, and 28 cm from 1960 through 1969. Both Xorry patterns were made from mohair. However, the Xorry under discussion here is made from mostly dralon, and other 1970-era fabrics.

Let's try and outfox her material-mashup. In the 1960s and 1970s, Steiff produced a great number of toy items in dralon materials. At the time, it was a good solution for toy making as it was relatively easy to work with, very durable, washable, and less expensive than fine woolen fabrics. Starting in the early to mid 1970s, Steiff included a touch of mohair fabrics on items that were predominately made from synthetic fabrics - perhaps to give them a more "upscale" presentation. For example the company's 12 and 18 cm Snuffy rabbit from 1974-1982 has mohair on the back of his ears, top of his tail, and on his two front legs. And their mostly dralon 18 and 25 cm Tapsy Bear Cub from 1972-1978 features a mohair muzzle.

Given all of this, it is Steiffgal's best thinking that this little dralon fox with mohair detailing was made as a sample, or in a very low production run, in the mid-1970s. Its mix of materials and familiar pattern strongly suggest that it was designed as possible lower-cost, next version alternative to the company's 1957-1970 timeframe mohair Xorry Desert Fox - but never released on a commercial scale.

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on this unusual Desert Fox has given you the warm and fuzzies. 

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

Look Who Reappeared On Little Cats Feet?

Reunited, and it feels so good! Childhood and Steiff often go hand in hand, so it is always a sweet treat to come across a old button-in-ear friend from long ago. This just happened to a new friend from across the pond, who asks about her blue-eyed beauty. Vicki from the UK writes...

"Hi, I recently found my childhood toy in my dad's under stair cupboard. She is what appears to me to be a leopard I have attached a photo of front and back. She's a hand puppet with a stuffed head with a solid finger hole in her head (difficult to describe) the button is in her ear with some yellow fabric still present although ragged. She has blue glassy eyes and whiskers. I would like to know if you can tell me the age as I can't find anything similar when I search online just cats but she's not tabby. Thanks for your help. I'm from Hertfordshire. She has no claw stitches but her nose is sewn with pink thread. Inside the fabric is very rough but I'm guessing it's mohair (I wasn't sure if real fur?) I've had her since I was little and I'm 38."

Well, isn't this the cat's meow? What we have here is not actually a leopard but a kitty, although the two probably share alot of the same feline DNA in real life. Steiff has named her "Hand Minka Cat." This oversized puppet measures about 30 cm tall and is made from white and patterned woven fur. Her head is stuffed with soft foam, which has a tendency to break down over time. Her face comes alive with a pronounced white muzzle, oversized blue and black pupil eyes, a pink nose, and dark whiskers. She left the factory wearing a red ribbon. Minka Cat appeared in the line in this size and color combination only from 1978 to 1984. Given Vicki was born in 1980, her ownership timeline corresponds perfectly to the production era of this puppet.

Puppets are legacy novelties for Steiff, and a cat puppet has been in the line since about 1912. As for Vicki's particular cat puppet, it is part of a series of larger, all woven fur puppets from 1978. These included a bear, rabbit, dog, owl, donkey, penguin, and this cat. All were 30 cm in size and had charming, childlike presentations to them. They were more soft and silly than serious - and clearly designed for play. 

The 1970's were a challenging time at Steiff in terms of production and costs, as the competition with products from Japan really disrupted the toy marketplace. The year after Minka debuted, in 1979, Steiff launched its "Hand Cat" puppet, which was 27 cm in size and had a blue trevira velvet body. Only its head and paws were made from patterned plush. His only "detail" was  small white felt collar. All of these updates to the pattern were probably done for the purpose of making a smaller, cheaper, more efficient-to-produce cat puppet for the line. Hand Cat appeared though 1983. You can see this Hand Cat puppet here on the left; the picture is from Pfeiffer's 1947-2003 Sortiment. 

Like a cat with nine lives, it is interesting to note that in 1984, Steiff re-engineered its trevira bodied Hand Cat puppet - again.  It now featured an even simpler face, which saved on labor costs, and was made in a much more basic grey plush fabric, which saved on material costs. This model appeared in the line from 1984 through 1992 overall. You can see this cat - and other soft plush puppets on offer at the time - pictured here on the left; the photo is from Steiff's "Steiff Collection 1992" customer catalog. 

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on Vicki's cat puppet has been a happy handful for you.

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

Keeping Things Balanced With This One Legged Steiff Studio Grey Heron

It's important to keep things balanced when it comes to Steiff, right?  Well, no vintage collectible better demonstrates that then this fantastic and lifelike Steiff studio bird!  Check out this "one-legged wonder" and see what makes him so interesting from the design and historical perspectives.

This great and unusual Steiff bird is really on solid footing, despite what you might think!  This studio, or life sized, Grey Heron is 50 cm tall, unjointed, and standing on one leg.  He is primarily made from short white plush and short grey plush.  He is brought to life with stenciled felt wings; long grey and white plush "feathering" on his back, chest, and head; and a long, thin yellow trivera velvet beak.  His pert face is detailed with light green and black pupil eyes and a black plush "bandit style" mask across his forehead. And of course, you can't help but notice his authentic, yellow trivera legs (or in this case, leg!) with its prominent, distinct "knee" and large four toed foot. This Grey Heron was made from 1980 through 1984 in this size only.  He is pictured from three angles in the photo above.

This big bird has a leg up in a few areas over his other Steiff bird cousins.  First of all, this is the only Grey Heron (or any heron at all) that Steiff has ever produced in the line - at least as far as Steiffgal can find.  It is also the only one legged bird Steiff has ever produced - again, as far as Steiffgal knows of.  Although this bird only has one leg, it does have a second foot which is attached to his body.  You can see how Steiff did this in a realistic manner in the photo here on the left - as if he were "tucking" his long leg under his wing. And, in case you are wondering, he really can balance on one leg - given there are no strong drafts or wandering pets within a three foot radius of him!

It is Steiffgal's best guess that this "tall drink of water" is a variation on the company's somewhat better known two legged white studio stork.  That traditional bundle-of-joy-bearer is 50 cm tall, unjointed, standing and made from short, white woven fur and long, white tufted plush. He has very subtle light blue airbrushing on his forehead and wings and sports black trivera velvet feathers on the tips of his white wings. He has delightful, posable red trivera velvet legs.  Each foot has four red trivera "toes." His face is detailed with brown and black pupil eyes and a red trivera velvet beak. Like Steiff's studio Grey Heron, this studio stork was manufactured from 1980 through 1984; he is pictured here on left.

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on Steiff's one-legged Grey Heron makes you want to stand up and cheer!

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

A Tall, Dark, and Handsome Steiff Mystery!

A tall, dark, handsome, and mysterious (Steiff) gentleman appeared in Steiffgal's inbox, and she couldn't be more pleased!  Steiffgal is always open to this type of introduction, and even Steiffguy is OK with it!  Take a look at this note from a reader, who asks about an "almost" life sized Steiff doll that has been in his family for over a quarter century.  Bryan writes... 

"Dear Steiffgal,

Anything you can tell me about this item? It has been in my family for well over 25 years. It still has its Steiff tag on it, but I have not been able to find out any information about it through my own searching.  The tag LOOKS like like it has the numbers 7749/12 on it, but they are really hard to decipher. 

This is a large doll that looks like someone from Saudi Arabia, perhaps.  It measures roughly 30" high at the tallest point, and is about 24" wide. The legs are not jointed, but it is possible the arms are, they have much more of a range of movement than the legs. Its hard to tell without removing the clothing. As far as the clothing goes, nothing has ever been done to it by us, so as far as I know it is original.  

Here is the story I was always told growing up about it. My dad used to import cars from Germany. On one of his trips over there, around 1983 or 1984, he was in a gift store in the Frankfurt Airport and he saw Muhammad Ali buying this same doll (or one similar, the details are vague). Of course, Ali was causing a huge commotion as everyone wanted to see him and get autographs/photos with him. He decided if Ali was buying one, he wanted one too and jumped in line behind him and bought this one. He says it was the last one they had.  Both my dad and Ali carried these dolls onto the plane, Ali in first class, my dad is coach.  Dad thinks he paid around $300US for it.

Many thanks, Bryan"

So, just who is this international man of mystery?  Well, to be honest, Steiffgal is not 100% sure, as she has never seen this piece before, and it does not appear in any standard Steiff reference books.  However, there are several clues about him that may shed a little light on his dating, background, purpose, and history. 

First check out his tag and button.  He has Steiff's traditional thick letter raised script button which technically appeared on items from the early to mid 1960's through around 1972.  His yellow linen tag was used from 1969/1970 through 1980. However, Steiffgal has noticed from some items in her personal collection that the thick letter raised script button has appeared on some larger, studio items through the mid- to late 1970's as well. 

Next check out the writing on his tag.  It is clearly handwritten.  It has been Steiffgal's observation that in the past in general, Steiff hand wrote numbers on a tag on studio (life sized) items, items that only very few were produced, sample items, and other rarities.  Although the meanings of the different numbers have changed over time, and several times in the 1950's and 1960's, Steiffgal can decipher that the first two digits, a 7 and a 7, most likely indicate Steiff is describing this item as "in caricature" - the first 7 - and "synthetic, rubber" for the second 7.  That would make sense, given the doll has a playful look to him, and is most likely made from man-made trivera velvet.  The "49" may - and this is just a guess - indicate 49 cm as a sitting size for this item, as the total height is around 75 cm.  It is not clear what the final two digits after the slash may indicate.  Overall, his tag suggests that he is very unusual and made for a special purpose.

Now his look and materials.  As mentioned above, he appears to be made from trivera velvet, a material that was very popular at Steiff in the 1970's through the 1980's.  It had a soft and durable "skin" like texture and look to it. This material was used quite frequently on play dolls, notably on a series of adorable little friends from 1972 through 1982.  They are pictured here on the left.  This material is occasionally used at Steiff today; a somewhat recent example is the 100cm bier monk doll Steiff created in 1999 for Alpirsbacher Klosterbraeu, a traditional brewery located in Germany’s Black Forest.   

Of course, it's never polite to guess any one's age.  But given all the clues mentioned above, Steiffgal feels that this doll most likely was manufactured in the the mid 1970's - a little less than a decade before being discovered by Bryan's dad!   

Now for his purpose.  Here's where best guessing and a little knowledge come together.  Based on his size, rarity, and hand written tag, Steiffgal THINKS that this doll was produced for one of these reasons:

1. As part of a large storefront window display, perhaps of the nativity (he could have been a wise man posed with a camel) or of a Middle Eastern vignette.
2. As a "customer special", a piece ordered and then designed and produced in very limited quantities for a private customer or organization.
3. As a sample which was never produced in a large enough scale for documentation.    

Given that, then you may be asking why were there two of these, and why were they for sale in a Frankfurt airport gift shop?  It is entirely possible that for any of the three reasons listed above, Steiff produced a handful of extras and had them on hand in storage.  It would not be out of character for Steiff (and Steiffgal means this in the most loving way...) to sell these older extras to retailers to make a few dollars, and some extra room, in their inventory stockrooms.  

Steiffgal hopes this research into Bryan's great mystery doll has added a little foreign intrigue to your day! 

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