The history of teddy bears

Teddy Bear

teddy bear, translated from Chinese as teddy bear, should be called Roosevelt bear according to local American parlance.

Strictly speaking, our common stuffed bear toys are not really teddy bears. Just as cars have different shapes, specifications and brands, plush bears also have different brands, styles, appearances and even designers. It is impossible to represent all the bears with teddy bears. However, because teddy bears are so widely used, people often refer to all plush teddy bears as teddy bears.

In fact, plush teddy bears existed long before teddy bears appeared. Although at present, there is no direct evidence to prove the origin and origin of the earliest invention of teddy bears, as early as the end of the 19th century, there were traces of teddy bears. In 188, the most popular toy in Berlin was a wooden bear standing on four wheels (on all fours is a toy car that can be pulled around). At the same time, a Drinking Bear made of automatic clockwork was also popular in local bars in Moscow, which could not only drink wine from a bottle, but also smoke and dance. In 1893, Steiff, the most famous teddy bear manufacturing company, also made some vertical non-Muppet bear toys with chains embedded in their noses. However, these teddy bears, which have not been baptized for more than 1 years, appeared in a realistic image, which is not only realistic in vision, but also heavy and hard in touch. It will take a long time to develop into a plush bear with rotatable limbs.

In fact, teddy bear was originally an independent proper term. The most correct statement should be that only bears made between 193 and 1912 before World War I, that is, during the term of President Roosevelt, can be called teddy bears.

The teddy bear born in p>193 originated from President Roosevelt's passion for bears and its popularity at that time. It can be said that it is the old ancestor of the stuffed bear now. It has a plump figure and limbs, fluffy and warm Angora wool, simple materials and embroidery thread, simple and honest expression, and 1% hand sewing and stuffing work. Whether it comes from the United States or Europe, the spirit left over from ancient times still exists today.

But these real teddy bears, even the so-called antique bears, are rare now. Only in books, museums or collectors' homes can we get a glimpse of their true colors. However, these teddy bears, which will never return, have been revived under the current retro trend and historical nostalgia, as well as the concept of auction and collectors' preservation. There have been manufacturers re-opening the mold to imitate the replica bears at that time, or deliberately imitating the retro bear toys of the old days.

introduction of steiff teddy bear

Margaret, Ms. Steiff was born in the southern German town of Giengen in 1847. She was unfortunately infected with polio when she was one and a half years old. Since then, she was doomed to spend her life in a wheelchair, but she did not defeat this lively and optimistic little girl. In 1879, she founded her own flannel clothing store.

in December p>1879, in a magazine called "Modewelt", Ms. Margaret found a version of a toy elephant, and she tried to make some for her friends. Because of the favorable comments, in 1883, she gradually developed a small group of plush animals and added them to the original catalogue of clothing exhibits. Steiff was officially registered on March 3, 1893. At that time, its turnover was 4, yuan, and its working partner had four employees. In 1897, with the help of her brother (Fritz), the number of employees increased to 1, and the annual turnover increased to 9, yuan.

In p>1894, Steiff officially entered the exhibition, and the addition of Fritz's son, -Rihard, opened a new page for Steiff. According to his sketches in Stugart Zoo, he designed bears and monkeys with movable hands and feet. With these new products, he participated in the Lipzke exhibition in the United States. At first, almost no one was interested. At the end of the exhibition, a buyer from America, Hermannberg, represented Geoborgfledt &; Co., Ltd., interested in this innovative product, ordered 3 teddy bears on the spot. Unfortunately, these historic landmarks have been unable to be found.

In p>192, because of an anecdote of President Roosevelt, the fluffy Teddy bear was given a real name "Teddy Bear", which made the Steiff bears craze quickly spread all over the United States and spread it to the whole world. Made an annual output of nearly 1 million Steiff teddy bears and sold them all over the world!

product differentiation

Steiff's registered trademark is the button on the left ear. Steiff's earliest Logo is an S that is "deformed" from the trunk. Later, due to the imitation of competitors, Margaret had a whim to use a button as the Logo, which was originally just a blank button. In 194, with elaborate patterns, this button also symbolized the bear's passing. When Steiff applied for a patent in Germany, he didn't apply directly with this button, but registered with the word "Button in ear". Look carefully at the side label of the ear buckle, which also has this line. On the other hand, it is also a gold ear buckle, but it can also be divided into three types according to the label:

red letters on white background, black characters on white background and yellow labels indicate different meanings.

yellow label:-unlimited production: the serial number of the product is indicated on the front, and the ingredients of the manufacturing materials are indicated on the back.

red label on white background:-limited production (for a certain purpose, theme, festival, country, allusions, limited commemorative bear products launched by enterprises) is marked with the serial number of the product on the front, and the limited production year, limited quantity and the name of the bear on the back.

general properties can be divided into two types:

one is designed and manufactured in cooperation with well-known enterprises. For example, in 1999, Golden Ear Buckle cooperated with Swiss Triangle Chocolate to design a teddy bear, and the teddy bear held the Swiss Triangle Chocolate, and the commemorative bear launched in cooperation with Coca-Cola, the latest teddy bear racing group launched with Mercedes Benz in 2, Disney cartoon characters and other well-known international brands.

The other is the agents in various regions of Golden Ear Bucket, which can be based on their countries or regions every year, with special themes such as: the harmonious bear and romantic bear in Hong Kong in 1997, the bear commemorating the 5th anniversary of the Vienna Children's Choir in 1999, the national bear commemorating Britain in 2, the bear commemorating Audrey Hepburn and the bear commemorating Holland. Although commemorative bears are produced in limited quantities, it doesn't mean that each one will increase in value or be worth collecting, because some of them are too commercialized, and unless you have a special preference for the brand, you don't need to blindly collect every commemorative bear.

black label on white background:-antique replica bear, limited production, with serial number on the front, limited production year, limited release quantity and the name of this bear on the back.

The replica bear is a teddy bear with a classic style of gold ear buckle or once set a high price in the auction market, with a size of 1:1, identical workmanship and materials. The production purpose of the replica bear is to achieve the same goal. Therefore, for Europeans and Americans, it may be that kind of historical emotion. They have a special liking for copying bears. Although their looks are not fancy, they are not like commemorating bears' fancy, but this is the original spirit of the golden ear buckle.

Member-only commemorative bears:-Only members who join the Steiff Club every year can buy

Steiff Club was established in Germany in 1992, and launched the first member-only commemorative bear, but it was only launched in Europe at this time. In 1993, it expanded all over the world and began to recruit members from all over the world and launched the annual member-only commemorative bear purchase. The number of member bears was based on before 12: pm on March 31st every year. The number of bears ordered by members determines the production quantity of this year, as long as you have the subscription volume of Steiff members' commemorative bears-(Club Coupon) Steiff is obliged to help you produce a teddy bear belonging to members, and with this volume, you can buy it from any agent in the world regardless of geographical boundaries. P.S must have a STEIFF CLUB magnetic card on his chest.

Historical records

Steiff has a historical background of more than 15 years, and has always been favored by collectors all over the world. Every year, the teddy bears produced will cause a stir and be snapped up, and its historical record of repeated auctions will push Steiff to the climax of success, which will also make the company firmly sit on the throne of teddy bears in the world. The following are the historical records of international auctions in recent years:

Name, height, year, auction date, Taiwan dollar, international auction

Teddy girl 46 194 4,84, 5.12.1994 Christie's

Happy) 65 1926 2,42, 19.9.1989 Sotheby's < p 12.6.1993 Christie's

Black Steiff Teddy Bear 48 1912 1,64,8 18.5199 Sotheby's

Alfonzo), Red 33 196 532, 4 18.5.199 Christie's

Apricot Steiff Teddy Bear 5 194 517,88 9.5.1991 Sotheby's

White Steiff with Muzzle 51 1913 387,2 15.5.1987 Sotheby's

Apricot Steiff Teddy.

With-Blond Steiff Teddy 7 1915 321,2 18.1.1991 Carlin

With-Blond Steiff Teddy 74 194 266, 2 15.5.1987 Sotheby's

with Steiff Teddy Muzzle 45 1913266, 215.5.1987 Sotheby's

With Steiff Teddy Bear 51 194 226, 2 31.1.199 Sotheby's