Keeping It In The Family With This Nearly Century-Old Steiff Bear

Old friends make for the best of friends. And so it is with this heirloom who calls the Western part of the USA home. He has lived his nearly century long life with the same family, which is wonderful for both the bear and his people! His owners simply write...

"We are interested in getting more info on a red tag bear who measures approximately 28” standing and 20" sitting. He's been in the family since the 1930s. Thank you."

This delightful and most appealing five ways jointed cub is Steiff's legacy, standard line blonde mohair Teddy bear. This pattern in this color was made in 10, 15, 18, 22, 25, 30, 32, 35, 40, 46, 50, 60, 70, and 115 cm from 1906-1933. Like most prewar blonde Steiff bears, he has black hand embroidered nose, mouth, and claw stitching. He has longish arms with spoon shaped paws and a moderately sized back hump. His paw pads are made from felt and appear to be original to him. His eyes are brown and black glass pupil style, perhaps slightly oversized in proportion.

Bear's red ear tag, long trailing "f" button, and proportions date his production to the c. 1926-1933 time frame. This aligns really well with the history his family shared. Steiffgal suspects that he was born probably towards the beginning of that time frame as he has more of a 1920s era look to him. Bears from the 1920s tend to be more fuzzy, full figured, and youthful looking. Those from the 1930s often are less fuzzy, more serious looking, and leaner all around. You can check out an image of Steiff's bears from the company's 1929 catalog here on the left for reference. As you can see, they really have a fun and upbeat look to them. 

Given Ted's dimensions - 20 inches/50 cm sitting and 28 inches/70 cm standing - this bear is technically the company's 70 cm version. This suggests his article number would be 5350,2. This translates to 5=jointed, 3=mohair, 50=size sitting, and ,2=has a growler (noisemaker) in the belly. Sometimes these growlers work but often they break over time. It is not clear if this Ted still talks. However, 5350,2 is the number that would be most likely on his red tag if it were still legible.

As for value, something is worth what someone will pay for it. Steiffgal has not seen or handled this bear firsthand, and does not know if he has any significant losses or condition issues, including those that don't show up in pictures. These include things like dry mohair, smoke damage, or insect damage. However, given he is as nice - and as "healthy" - as he appears in his photos, Steiffgal suspects he may trade hands in the c. $2,500-4,500 range.

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on this heirloom prewar Ted has timeless appeal to you.

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

Breathtaking Bear Beauties on Offer at Ladenburger Spielzeugauktion's 2023 Special Steiff Auction in Giengen

Can you bear it? Ladenburger Spielzeugauktion's July 1st, 2023 Special Steiff Auction in Giengen is presenting one of the finest lineups of vintage to antique button-in-ear collectibles in memory. Many of those wah-hoo good treasures are from the collection of Susan Kilgore Wiley. Ladenburger sold the first half of her over-the-moon great hug in January, 2023. This second sale presents even more Wiley temptations, including some of the world's most fantastic and aspirational Steiff bears Steiffgal has ever seen! Here are three extraordinary ones that really caught her eye, and why. 

The first can-you-bear it bear is lot #64, a most unusual Teddy Clown bear. It has a starting bid of 1,300 euro and is cataloged by the auction house as:

"Clown-bear, exceptional, with button, block letters, long trailing f, minimally rests of the red cloth tag label, big blue glass eyes, bright embroidering at snout, and claw embroidering, strong fiery mohair, long snaped off arms, hump, 33 cm, except of small faults felt paws in very nice condition, with ruff, without hat, very expressive."

It's really the best of two legacy Steiff worlds with this terrific temptation. At first glance, he sort of looks like a Petsy the Baby Bear with his tipped mohair, pink hand embroidered nose and mouth, and blue eyes. But, he does not have the signature center facial seam construction or wire lined ears as seen on Steiff's Petsy cubs. But, he has his factory original neck ruff, and these were not put on any models other than Steiff's Teddy Clown bears - at least as far as Steiffgal knows! It is also important to note that this bear's detailing and configuration is not noted in Pfeiffer's Sortiment books. This suggests that very few were produced. Steiffgal suspects that his "birthday" was probably in the mid to late 1920s time frame, when both Petsy and Teddy Clown made their appearances in the catalog. This is only the second of his type Steiffgal knows of.

And speaking of Petsy - this second can-you-bear it bear is lot #15, an insanely rare and equally adorable Petsy bear. It has a starting bid of 1,600 euro and is cataloged by the auction house as:

"One of the of the highlights of the this year's STEIFF-GIENGEN-auction, Petsy, produced around 1930, with seam at the middle of head, nice, full, pointed mohair, rare cross-eyed, with button, block letters, long trailing f, bright embroidering at snout, long snaped off arms, hump, big ears, original felt paws with flaws here and there, and scattered spotty mohair loss at neck, hump, ears, and shoulder, otherwise very nice condition, nice strong color of the mohair, standing height 50 cm, extremely rare, extremely expressive, an unusual rarity."

Steiffgal is pretty certain that this eye-catching (pun intended) rarity is on every single Steiff collector's dream wish list! It goes without saying that Petsy bears do incredibly well at auction, with one selling for a mind boggling 66,000 euro at a Ladenburger sale in January, 2023. However, this particular one, with black and blue cartoon eyes, is simply off the charts when it comes to his rarity, expression, and presentation. Steiffgal would not be surprised if this example trades hands near or even above this previous record! And what makes this bear so extraordinary?  His "half and half" glass eyes are sewn in his head in such a way that they can be tilted and rotated, giving him countless silly to serious facial expressions. Petsy bears usually have stationary, glass pupil eyes. This is one of the few Petsy bears of this size with cartoon style eye extant. 

And now for the wow OMG wow third can-you-bear it bear of this sale, let's take look at lot #82. This is a Steiff black Titanic bear. It has a starting bid of 4,500 euro and is cataloged by the auction house as:

"Titanic bear, one of the highlights of the this year's STEIFF GIENGEN auction 2023. A rare item from 1912, was produced in remembrance of the victims of the sinking of the Titanic on April 14th 1912. It were 82 pieces of this grief bear/ black bear produced. This Titanic bear has a seam at the middle of head, red shoe button eyes that are underlaid with felt, black embroidered nose and claws, small STEIFF button, block letters, long trailing f, long snaped off arms, hump, voice, intact, small faults at the feet, produced between 1912 and 1917, 50 cm, nice full black mohair, with provenience, enclosed invoice by the original purchase at Sotheby's 1990, and newspaper article by an American antique magazine, "Antique Review" from February 1991, one of the rarest bears that were ever auctioneered by the Ladenburger Spielzeugauktion."

This bear is so amazing that he leaves Steiffgal pretty much speechless in terms of analysis. So she will share a little story about him instead. When she first heard about this bear, she was certain it was a replica, based on how he was described to her. But his owners insisted he was the real deal from 1912. Fast forward, Steiffgal met this bear in person. His owners handed him to her, and he really was as close to tissue new as possible. So new that Steiffgal again thought he was a replica at first. But after a few moments, it became clear that he was well over 100 years and just in clean, breathtaking condition. His owners did not mention his center seam - which just puts this bear over the top in terms of appeal, desirability, and rarity. It's anyone's guess how the bidding will roll out with this bear... but watching it unfold should be more thrilling than any major Hollywood production!

For more information on this amazing sale to be held on July 1, 2023 and to see all of the great lots on offer, please see the auction house's website at https://www.spielzeugauktion.de.

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on auction bear highlights has left you star-struck!

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

Simply The Best: Highlights From Ladenburger Spielzeugauktion's July 1, 2023 Steiff Auction Event

Last January, Ladenburger Spielzeugauktion GmbH presented the first installment of the Susan Kilgore Wiley collection of breathtaking, antique Steiff bears, animals, and novelties. This awesome event realized over $475,000 and was the talk of the international vintage Steiff collecting community. Now it's time for the second part of the sale, which is most fittingly being held on July 1st, 2023 in Giengen, Germany in association with Steiff's annual Steiff Sommer celebration. Here are three over the top items on offer as part of that auction. Steiffgal did not even know these items existed until now, they are that rare and that AMAZING. Please sit down, fasten your seatbelt, and read on!

It's the best of all worlds with this first Wiley auction highlight. Here we have lot #45, an early 20th century Steiff Teddy bear girl doll. It is cataloged by the auction house in part as:

"One of the of the highlights of the auction, probably a prototype by the Fa. STEIFF, unusual doll, felt head, blue glass eyes, bright mohair hair, with button, block letters, long trailing f, bear body, with white mohair, probably original silk ribbon and silk collar, height: 35 cm, small felt faults at the right cheek, exceptional, stronger mohair loss on the reverse of the legs and at the back, otherwise single places with slightly thin mohair, exceptional, probably an unique specimen." It has an opening bid of 1500 €.

This beautiful treasure probably dates around 1912, given her presentation, glass pupil eyes, and facial seaming. It was around that time that Steiff's proportional dolls were becoming very popular. The company was producing a number of adorable student and childlike dolls that were dressed in everyday clothes, Sunday best, and regional attire. These charming examples were even sold through FAO Schwarz in the United States! Steiffgal suspects that Steiff was looking at ways to expand their doll offering through different novelty options, and knows of a Steiff topsy-turvy style doll prototype from c. 1912. It makes perfect sense that Steiff would experiment with a doll head and a Teddy bear body, as the company specialized in both deigns and other manufacturers had these "hybrid" items in their lines. This doll bear probably did not go into production because it was very expensive and labor intensive to manufacture on a commercial scale.

This next highlight is truly on fire. Here we have lot #49, a most colorful Steiff Teddy on the go. The auction house catalogs it in part as:

"STEIFF Record-teddy, produced 1927-1930, with button, block letters, long trailing f, red fiery mohair, glass eyes, felt paws, except of minimally places in good condition, scattered thin mohair, and mohair loss, swivel head, color is wear down at the wooden wheels, height: 24 cm, length: 24 cm, extremely exceptional, very strong colors, rare." It has an opening bid of 1200 €.

Collectors will recognize this delightful pull toy as an example of the company's legacy Record pattern. This pull toy design debuted around 1912 in the form of Record Jocko, a chimp on wheels. Bears and dolls on wheels quickly followed this introduction as they made for perfect passengers on Steiff's simple but charming four wheeled cart design. According to Pfeiffer's Sortiment, this particular Record Teddy was produced in 20 and 25 cm from 1927-1930. What's so interesting about this time frame is that it exactly corresponds with the "heyday" of the appearance of brilliantly colored, tipped mohair items in the Steiff line. Steiffgal has never seen an orange tipped Steiff bear in this size, and it is possible that they were only created for this novelty, and not as a freestanding item. Other tipped mohair highlights from the "roaring 20s" include rabbits, cats, dogs, and other eye-catching pets. 

And last but not least, please check out lot #54, a musical Teddy clown bear. The auction house catalogs it in part as:

"Teddy clown, rare, with music mechanism, probably a single-item production, yellow gold mohair plush, glass eyes, bright embroidering at snout, softly stuffed, kapok filling, a rarity, with hat, standing height 39 cm, with button, block letters, long trailing f, scattered small faults at the felt paws, nice, full mohair, with music mechanism, long snaped off arms, on the reverse here and there with places with minimally mohair loss, original ruff and hat, produced c. around 1927." It has an opening bid of 1900 €.

These sorts of rarities make collectors want to break out in song! Teddy Clown bears themselves are quite rare on the market, given they were only made from 1926-1930 overall. In 1928, Steiff debuted a series of "Music-Animals" based on their most popular designs and patterns of the time. These items were standard line animals with a music box imbedded in their torsos. According to company documents, they included a Teddy bear, Petsy, Bully dogs, Molly, Cheerio, Fellow, Charly, Treff, Fluffy, a lamb, and a clown. There is no mention of a musical Teddy Clown in any materials Steiffgal can find. However, given the range of characters and novelties produced as music box toys, it is not out of the question that Steiff would have considered producing Teddy Clown as a musical edition. Perhaps this example was created as a prototype for this product development experiment.

For more information on this amazing sale to be held on July 1, 2023 and to see all of the great lots on offer, please see the auction house's website at https://www.spielzeugauktion.de.

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on these absolute auction rarities has further cataloged your interest in vintage Steiff!

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

Getting All Fussy Over This Lovely Steiff Gussy

This pretty kitty can only be described as the cat's meow! Steiff's early postwar production is beloved for its innovation, attention to detail, smaller scale, and the fact that items from this time frame are just so darn cute. Cats and dogs ruled the roost during this period, with this black and white beauty being a true stand out in the feline category. Come see what makes her so special from the design and product development perspectives.

Here we have Steiff's "Young Kitty Gussy." She is pictured here on the left and is 12 cm, standing, and head jointed. Her body and head are made from white mohair, while her tail is made from black mohair. She has black airbrushed highlights on her feet, rear end, sides, and around her black felt ears. Her face comes to life with a white velvet muzzle, piercing green glass slit pupil eyes, a pink hand embroidered nose and mouth, a spot of pink airbrushing on her lips, and clear monofilament whiskers. She left the factory wearing a pink ribbon. This Gussy's IDs include a raised script button, yellow ear tag, and a named, blue imprinted, bear faced chest tag.

Gussy was also produced in 17 cm. She is pictured here on the left. The larger version had two main design differences from the smaller version. Bigger Gussy featured velvet ears instead of felt ears, and had a pink velvet lined mouth instead of a closed mouth. Gussy was produced from 1952-1969 overall. In 1999-2000, Steiff produced a really sweet 17 cm Gussy replica, but did not call her Gussy. She was named 'Classic 1952 Cat', most likely a reference to her year of introduction. This special edition is pictured below and is wearing a blue ribbon.

Open mouth cats are pretty rare for Steiff. The only other mid-century examples that Steiffgal can think of here are the company's Siamy Siamese cats, which were made in 11, 15, and 23 cm from 1953-1954.

Gussy debuted in the line at a really critical time in the company's history. Gussy was introduced in the very early 1950s, so it is possible to find examples with US Zone tags and red imprinted chest tags. A few years after the conclusion of WWII, when the factory was up and running for toy making, Steiff started to produce a large number of smaller, beautifully detailed animals for export. These were brand new patterns, not carry-overs or "updated" prewar designs. Many of these were dogs and cats, as these have always been "best sellers" for the company. These new patterns helped build (and rebuild) Steiff’s business worldwide as soldiers returning home from the war in Europe often brought these “toys” back home as gifts and souvenirs of their time abroad. After all, they didn’t take up too much room in standard issue G.I. duffle bag—most even could fit in a coat pocket. These beloved and newly launched “pocket pets” included Dally the Dalmatian, Tessie the Schnauzer, Snobby the Poodle, and Gussy the Young Kitty, among others.

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on Young Kitty Gussy has tickled your whiskers!

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