This Precious Prewar Pug On Wheels Stands And Delivers!

As she continues to celebrate the arrival of her newly adopted sister-pugs, Steiffgal thought it was the perfect moment to share a special button-in ear version of the beloved breed. Dogs have always been an important design category for Steiff, so it should be no surprise that the first flat-faced cutie was introduced in the Steiff catalog in 1916. Take a look at this very early pug on the go and see what makes him so delightful from the design and product development perspectives.

This happy traveler is 22 cm tall (not including his wheels) and made from grey mohair. He is standing, unjointed, and solidly stuffed with excelsior. He has black hand embroidered claws on each of his feet. His distinctive face comes to life with proportional brown and black glass pupil eyes (which may be replaced), a black hand embroidered nose and mouth, and black lines on his forehead - to give him his breed-specific wrinkled forehead. His pert ears are lined in velvet, and he has a very curly tail. He retains his small trailing "f" button and traces of his white paper ear tag as his Steiff IDs.

Now let's dig deeper into his detailing. Pug wears a leather collar, which may or may not be original to him, but is appropriate in materials, design, age, and fit. His pull cord has been lost to time. Pug is mounted to two metal rods and rides upon four wooden eccentric wheels. It is interesting to note that this pattern, unlike many other dog patterns, only came on wheels, and was not produced sitting or in any other configuration. Pug on wheels was produced in 17 cm and 22 cm from 1916-1927.

Like many of the Steiff pets debuting in the 19-teens, this perky pug has a proportional and literal design. The key pug breed elements - a flat muzzle, wrinkled forehead, and a curly tail - are very well represented in his pattern. For the most part, Steiff's dogs, cats, rabbits, and other popular pets introduced in the c. 1910-1920 time frame were not as basic as the company's earliest patterns, but did not have the youthful, often goofy or playful appearances of those items designed in the 1920s through early 1930s. Items from around 1925 onward often featured oversized eyes, brightly colored materials, and rounded faces, bodies, and limbs. As such, Steiff's second pug - introduced in 1925 as its first pug pattern was being phased out - was a truly silly looking sitting pup with exaggerated facial features and a larger than life red felt tongue. He appeared in the line from 1925 - 1927 in 14 cm. He is pictured on the left; the photo is from Pfeiffer's 1892-1943 Sortiment.

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on the company's early Pug on wheels has captured your interested in a round-about sort of way.

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