There's not a hare out of place when it comes to this prewar charmer. He is begging, head jointed, and made from long, shaggy tan artificial silk plush which has been highlighted with black (that has faded to a deep forest green.) He measures 23 cm head to toe, and his tan felt lined ears add another 12 cm to his height. His face is detailed with pink and red glass pupil eyes and a simple red hand embroidered nose and mouth. He has three matching red claws on each of his feet. Rabbit retains his short trailing "f" button in ear. When he left the factory, he wore a large silk ribbon and bell around his neck. This pattern was produced in 18, 23, and 29 cm from 1938-1943 overall. As rabbits are measured WITHOUT ears, today's bun under discussion is the 23 cm version.
According to his original owner, who now lives in Canada, "My Steiff silk stuffed bunny dates from late 1930s and was purchased in Brussels, Belgium."This rabbit's appearance and construction align well to his provenance, as well as to the manufacturing realities of the late 1930s and early 1940s at Steiff. It goes without saying that these were challenging times all around in Germany. So creating efficiencies in every area of design and manufacturing was imperative for survival. Steiff has always had a remarkable way of producing the most appealing items during down times, and this bunny pattern brings truly illuminates that. Here are four reasons why.
His fabric:
This hare's hair is made from artificial silk plush, a material that was more readily available and affordable than mohair and felt just before and after WWII. Steiff made many of its "mainstream" items in this material during this period. It translated well, at least in the short run, to Steiff's animal patterns but lost its appeal and luster quickly.
His embroidery:
To save costs and labor, Steiff designed his facial embroidery to be as simple as possible - basically a large red "X" on his muzzle. Just a few years prior, typical rabbit facial embroidery was two colored, and involved "filling in" the nose space with stitches. He also only has claws on his feet, even though it would not be challenging to embroider them on his paws as well.
His shape:
Rabbit's shape, although unquestionably "rabbit like," has been simplified and made less graceful and curvy than the company's begging bunnies from the c. 1925-mid-1930s overall.
His coloring:
Although he appears green and tan, he did start out life black and tan. His painting details have simply changed hue over time. It is interesting to note, that from the 1920s through the early 1930s, many animals that were multi-colored were constructed in a "patched" way, meaning that each color was its own color of mohair, and the colored fabric swatches were sewn together. Of course, this was beautiful and lifelike, but also very expensive and time consuming. To create significant efficiencies in production, the company started painting instead of patching animals, and this rabbit is a perfect example of that.
Steiffgal hopes this discussion on this charming prewar rabbit has been pure hoppy-ness to you!
Steiffgal hopes this discussion on this charming prewar rabbit has been pure hoppy-ness to you!
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