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Well, hello handsome! It's been a long time in the making... but a studio sized Steiff Teddy Baby bear named Ralph has finally made it into Steiffgal's hug! Check out this huge and heavy heartthrob and see what makes him fabulous in so many ways.
Remarkable Ralph truly is in a class by himself. He is standing, made from lovely long chocolate brown mohair, 160 cm tall, and arm and head jointed. He is SOLIDLY stuffed with excelsior from head to toe. His hand paw pads are made from a suede-like material. His larger than life face comes to life with brown and black glass pupil eyes; a black hand embroidered nose and mouth; an open, smiling, felt lined mouth; and a light tan mohair inset muzzle. His feet are covered in black felt and Steiffgal suspects that these mommy-made "slippers" cover up some damage on his mohair feet.
Like his namesake, Ralph has all the typical Steiff Teddy Baby design features - on steroids! These include flat feet made for standing, downturned wrists, a chubby belly, and a distinctly toddler-esque personality and presentation. This prehistorically proportioned cub left the factory in Giengen, Germany more than a half century ago wearing a red leather collar with an oversized bell, but those accessories have been lost to time. His silver raised script button is about the size of a US dime and remains in his left ear. It is Steiffgal's best guess that Ralph was probably born in the c. 1960-1967 time frame.
The heyday for Steiff's studio animal production was in the 1960s. In the company's "Display Animals" catalog from the late 1960s, over 70 different models are represented - including this Teddy baby. On his page, which is pictured here on the left, his article number is 0339/15 and he is noted at standing 160 cm or 60 inches tall. It is interesting to note, that although the Teddy baby design has been produced in brown, blonde, and a number of rare mohair color variations since his introduction in the late 1920s, Steiff only rendered their largest display size in brown mohair.
Now, what's the deal with the name Ralph? And why was Ralph's arrival so anticipated? For over 50 years, Ralph lived with a family on the west coast of the USA. Ralph's original owner won him in a contest as a young girl and immediately adopted him as one of the family! She named him Ralph. When asked why, the family said... just because! Perhaps Ralph was the name of a friend, family member, or even childhood crush at the time. Only Ralph knows for sure. And Steiffgal is keeping his name as Ralph to honor his legacy.
Time marched on, and it was time for Ralph to find his next forever home. The family contacted Steiffgal to learn more about their family treasure, and to see if she had a place in her hug for him! Of course she did! But the challenge was moving him from the west to the east coast in a safe and cost effective manner. After almost a year of research and planning, Ralph was packed for a trip to Mars in multiple layers of boxes and made his cross country journey on a large moving van. When he arrived at Steiffgal's doorstep, she could hardly believe her eyes concerning the size and weight of his packaging!
After a long afternoon of careful unpacking, Ralph finally made his proper introduction. You can watch this unboxing on the YouTube video included just above this paragraph. Although loved and cherished as a friend, toy, and confidante, he clearly has many more years of love and joy to give! Steiffgal will give him a good cleaning, fix up a few bumps and bruises on him, and then display him as a crown jewel in her collection.
Steiffgal hopes this discussion on Steiff's studio sized Teddy Baby bear has you living large today.
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