It's time to answer the call of the wild with this great Steiff forest friend! They say you learn something new every day, and that's a given when it comes to really studying vintage Steiff treasures. Come take a closer look at this Steiff Moosy Moose. He holds a very subtle secret about his dating and production... so secret that Steiffgal had no idea about it until it was brought to her attention by another Steiff superfan!
The only thing better than chocolate mousse would have to be THIS "chocolate" moose! What we have here is Steiff's Steiff's Moosy Elch or Moosy Moose. He is 25 cm, unjointed, and
standing. Moosy is made from short tan and brown mohair. He has an authentic mohair "dewlap" under his chin and a little tucked-in tail. Moosy's face is detailed
with black button eyes and a black airbrushed nose and mouth. He was produced overall in 14 and 25 cm.
Despite his big stature, Moosy only appeared for a very small amount of time in the Steiff catalog.
As a matter of fact, he was produced in 1960 as a US exclusive, and then in 1963
through 1964 in the general line. That in itself is not terribly unusual; you also see this type of distribution with Steiff's Bison from around the same time frame.
But here's where things get a little more interesting. The 14 cm version Moosy is pretty much identical in both the exclusive and general line production runs - with flat, elaborately shaped and airbrushed double thick felt antlers. However, for the 25 cm Moosy, things are a little different. Like the 14 cm version, the 1963-1964 general line Moosy has very large, flat, elaborately shaped and airbrushed double thick felt antlers. But the earlier version, the US exclusive from 1960, has huge, three-dimensional "puffy" style antlers that are stuffed with excelsior and highlighted with airbrushing. They appear almost like a royal headpiece... which would be so appropriate for this handsome Steiff rarity!
Clearly, the antlers are a way to date Moosy, when it comes to the larger version. But what about the little guy, pictured with his flat antlers here on the left? The secret here for him would be on his yellow ear tag identification number. If the last two digits after the comma (,) are 90, then he was made in 1960 as a US exclusive. If the last two digits after the comma (,) are 00, then he was made in 1963-1964 for the general line. Steiff often used the ,90 indication on a product's ear tag to indicate that it was made exclusively for the United States.
Steiffgal hopes this discussion on Steiff's Moosy Moose and his amazing antlers has been the crowning glory of your day.
Have a question about one of your Steiff treasures? Let's talk! Click here to learn more.
