The Devil Is In The Details When It Comes To Steiff's Rare Postwar Exclusives!

Little differences can mean alot when it comes to the vintage Steiff collecting world. Check out this darling black and white Cocker Spaniel puppy. She has a familiar ring to her, right? But one detail elevates her from beloved everyday companion to best of show at Westminster! Read on to learn more.

Here we have a darling black and white mohair Cockie Cocker Spaniel. She is 12 cm tall, sitting and head jointed. Her body is made from white colored mohair which has lovely hand airbrushed black spots on her legs and body. Her long, floppy ears are made solid black mohair. Her face and muzzle are darling, with a distinctly childlike appearance. She comes to life with pert black and white plastic google eyes, a hand embroidered black nose, and a painted mouth. She appears to be pouting - or begging for a bite of whatever you are snacking on at the moment! She retains her original red collar, which closes with one very small, plain silver snap.

Now for the grand reveal. This happy handful was made in this size only as an exclusive for the upscale toy retailer FAO Schwarz in 1962-1966. Schwarz sold her along with a simple wooden dog house, a red water bowl, bone, and mat as a set. She was attached to the house via a metal chain. The red wooden FAO Schwarz wooden tag was attached to the roof of the house. She is incredibly rare and only the second one Steiffgal has seen or handled in decades of collecting! Through the late 1970s, Steiff often partnered with FAO Schwarz to create store-exclusive products based on the company's most popular standard line items at the time. Other examples of these now-coveted rarities include a series of standing Dalmatians; a walrus puppet and pajama bag; an open mouthed, standing beagle; and a life-sized beagle, among several others.

In this particular case, this FAO Schwarz black and white Cockie Cocker Spaniel is based on Steiff's legacy black and white mohair STANDING Cockie Cocker Spaniel. This adorable model was produced in 12, 19, and 29 cm from 1960-1976. This Cocker Spaniel exclusive also has the same face and general appearance as the company's charming felt bodied Cockie Nightcap animal. Steiff produced these fun novelties as cats, dogs, bears, foxes, and rabbits in 15 cm from 1969-1974. They were designed to hide a sweet, prize, or coin on the pillow of a child. You can see Nightcap Cockie and a few of her cousins in the image above; this page is from one of Steiff's c. 1969 product catalogs. 

To wrap up this discussion, let's take a look at sitting Cockie's ear tag. Her article number is 3312,96. This translates to 3=sitting, 3=mohair, 12=12 cm tall, 9=display animal or special edition, and 6=black. That pretty much perfectly describes her!

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on this super rare and lovely Cocker Spaniel has added a beautiful highlight to your day.

Have a question about one of your Steiff treasures? Let's talk! Click here to learn more!

An Exclusive Look At A Rare And Charming Steiff Cocker Spaniel

Pull up a chair and check out this really sweet sitting little dog!  She's based on a standard line Steiff dog from the 1960's and 1970's... but with a little "exclusive" twist.  Do you recognize her?

It's probably no surprise that this black and white sitting Cocker Spaniel is named Cockie. She is 12 cm tall and head jointed. Her body is white mohair that has been hand airbrushed with black spots and highlights.  Her ears are made from solid black mohair.  Her face comes to life with black and white plastic "google" style eyes, a black hand embroidered nose, and an expressive muzzle area.  She wears her original red collar and has all of her Steiff IDs, including her "raised script" style button, named "bear faced" chest tag, and yellow ear tag.  Her unusual accessory is a metal leash, which is original to her.  

This sitting sweetie was produced from 1962 through 1966 only, and exclusively for the upscale toy retailer F.A.O. Schwarz.  She came as part of a doghouse set.  This consisted of a dollhouse style kennel, a red plastic food bowl, the metal dog lead, and a bone.  The kennel had a pull cord on the top, and when you pulled it, it made a barking/growing noise.  This set was most likely "assembled" at F.A.O. Schwarz.  You can see this doghouse set here on the left, the photo is from Gunther Pfeiffer's 1947-2003 Steiff Sortiment Book.

This F.A.O. Schwarz Cockie design is based on Steiff's standard line black and white standing Steiff Cocker Spaniel which appeared in the Steiff line from 1960-1976 in 12, 19, and 29 cm overall.  But, like many Steiff F.A.O. Schwarz dog items, this exclusive pattern was slightly different than the standard line version, so it was very desirable for collectors.  Other such F.A.O. Schwarz examples included standing Dally Dalmatians (produced in 11, 22, and 28 cm from 1953 through 1955; the standard line versions were sitting) and a 15 cm standing open mouthed beagle, produced from 1965 through 1966 only; the standard line standing beagle was closed-mouthed. An example of Steiff's standard line standing black and white Cockie is pictured here on the left.
 

Tongues are awag over Cockie's really cool ear tag.  It is pictured here on the left. The numbers on it are quite descriptive indeed, and are 3312,96.  In Steiff code, that translates to:  3=sitting; 3=mohair; 12=12 cm; 9=display animal or special edition; and 6=black.  Unfortunately, it has been years since Steiff has used such a numbering/identification system for their items, the digits on today's tags are purely for transactional and tracking purposes.  

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on this adorable and sitting F.A.O. Schwarz Cocker Spaniel has been an exclusive experience for you!

Have a question about one of your Steiff treasures? Let's talk! Click here to learn more.