This Antique Steiff French Soldier Doll Is Five Stars All The Way!

It's safe to say that this week's topic will have uniform appeal! Check out this absolutely handsome Steiff doll that recently marched into Steiffgal's collection. He was an attic find and listed on eBay, which only proves there's no telling where the next great find will surface.

This soldier doll truly stands and delivers. He is 50 cm tall, five ways jointed, and made from felt. His face comes to life with blue and black glass pupil eyes, a prominent nose, and a ginger inset mohair mustache. His inset mohair hair exactly matches the color, length, and density of his mustache. Soldier's body, legs, and feet are super long and skinny while his ears and nose are exaggerated. He retains his tiny button-in-ear as his Steiff ID. Given his overall presentation, Steiffgal would consider him a "transitional" doll in terms of Steiff's early doll production. This means meaning his aesthetic and production falls between the company's earliest and more cartoon-like "Karikaturpuppen" dolls (c. 1903-1914) and their truly human scale dolls (c. 1908 - 1930).

Not surprisingly, this soldier's timing and production align with military precision here. This doll, called "Kuerassier" and secondarily noted as a French soldier, was only made in this size - about 20 inches tall -  in 1912. Cuirassiers were cavalry equipped with armour, swords, and well embellished helmets. They appeared in late 15th-century Europe through the beginning of WWI. Today they may attend state occasions for ceremonial, non-combat related purposes. When this Kuerassier doll left the factory in Giengen, Germany over a century ago, he did indeed carry a metal sword, much like his namesake. Unfortunately it has been lost to time. 

Kuerassier's military outfit is five stars all the way. It aligns with the uniforms worn by French Calvary soldiers during the late Franco-Prussian era. His fitted jacket is made from blue felt and is integral to his body. It has a loose peplum on the bottom. It is detailed with tiny buttons up the front and on the sleeves, red embroidered piping, and red felt patches on the wrists and collar. Another eye catching features of his coat include its epaulets, which are made from felt, ribbon, and string. They attach to his shoulders via metals buttons that match the ones down the front of his coat. His pants are made from red felt and resemble jodhpurs, which make room in the legs for movement. His black, knee high boot are handmade from leather and have brown leather soles. They are pictured here on the left. His stunning solid brass helmet is decorated with a now lilac colored woolen fringe and resembles the helmets worn by his namesake French Cuirassier Troopers in the late 1800s. It has a partial metal chin strap. You can see an illustration of an early 20th century French Calvary soldier a little bit up and on the left; the similarities between the uniforms are so interesting! The image is from the The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Steiff’s soldier dolls were an important segment of the company’s line and business in during the first quarter of the 20th century. In a span of about 20 years, Steiff produced examples representing German, Scottish, Moroccan, Turkish, Dutch, Russian, American, Belgian, French, Italian, and Austrian armed forces, among others. Well over 100 distinct designs were produced during this time frame; most of these patterns were made in multiple sizes. However, after WWI, interest in soldier dolls understandably plummeted. The company filled this void in the 1920’s by realigning its doll production efforts towards a series of toddler dolls, dressed animal and bear dolls, popular cartoon inspired dolls, and other happy go lucky novelties.

Steiffgal hopes you found this discussion on this Kuerassier soldier doll worthy of a 21 gun salute.

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