Introduction . . .

I am now honored to reach out to the collectors and owners
of unidentified bears, stuffed animals and vintage toys.

Ken did this for years and was an expert appraiser. I was his understudy or apprentice and together we viewed and enjoyed each and every request that came our way.

Appraising bears online will be a fun adventure for all of us. We will share our discoveries here on this web page.

Meeting new faces, in teddy bear form, and sharing the knowledge I have gathered, will be a joy. Together we can discover that everything old can be newly appreciated!

Beary best,
Brenda Yenke                      

Hi Brenda,

This bear is 21 inches and came from the same person; European as the bear below.

Thanks for letting me know who he is.
Lisa

Hi Lisa,
This teddy bear has a longer pile mohair, with the similar trait of the sliced in ear. He is a German bear, from the Alvin Kiesewetter factory located tin Coburg. They formed originally in 1907, and a trademark was developed in 1921, “AlKiCo”. From the Teddy Bear Encyclopedia, Cieslik authors, a similar bear to yours is captured in a 1920 ad. I think he dates to this period, after WWI, with exporting a major advantage. The cord nose and claws are in good condition, while the arms are low on the shoulders. The current eyes are replacements, as the original were amber glass simply inserted into the head, on wire shanks and could easily be removed. The pads are also recovered. He is hand closed seam is in the back of the body, with excelsior being the stuffing. At 21”, this is considered a larger bear, with a value of $300.00. Your provenance helps with the values, creating background stories!
Brenda

Hi Lisa,
Your smaller teddy at 13” is made of very short bristle mohair and has arms that are a bit shorter than the legs. American teddies dating to this era, 1914, experienced stiff competition from the European counterparts. He does have the front closure as many of the imports had, and that was to accommodate voice boxes. Some had growlers, some squeeze boxes and others were apeechless! The cord nose and inverted Y extension mouth are in excellent condition, along with the three claws on each limb. The felt hands and feet have been recovered, as most of the American models had a lesser grade of wool felt, showing wear. The eyes appear to be a flat piece of fabric, replacing the original glass eyes that would have been simply on a wire shank and inserted into the head. The sliced in ears were a trait for a few American companies, a cost saving method to insure faster production. The year of the teddy boom was 1907- and it continued for several years. I think this mohair was actually produced in the States, another cost saving practice. His arms are set rather high on the body, and excelsior is the stuffing. Unidentified American teddy refers to those made in the U.S., with similar characteristics, and hard to document without original advertising. New York was the center for many short lived as well as long established factories. Today his value would be $150.00.
Brenda

Hello Brenda,
I find theses 3 quite endearing and they are special to me. I recently acquired the endearing family of bears in the picture and should like to have some information starting with the father bear because it seems the box is a mismatch. Father bear is 16 inches tall, mohair, cinnamon brown color and dressed in ethnic clothes including a pocket handkerchief and black laced felt boots. He is meticulously made, the snout area clearly is stitched and trimmed by hand, and he has glass eyes. In fact, overall, he is in mint condition. The label in back at the neck reads "Made especially for you by Marian Bush." Herein lies the puzzle as although transported in a Margarete Steiff Giengen-Brenz "knopf im Ohr" box made in West Germany there is no Steiff ear tag or swing ticket. The head is solid and hard and stitched to the trunk of the body which is not fur but formed as a stuffed shirt. The arms and legs are not jointed but firm although not as hard as the head. The britches are puffed up. The boots are laced and constructed with soles to enable the bear to stand on a shelf. I look forward to your comments.
Karen.

Hi Karen,
Thank you for all the photos, and the detailed description. Your Papa bear and family are handmade articles from an American teddy bear artist. That is the cloth name tag, Marian Bush, creator and maker. Her family of bears are meant to be a grouping, with Papa in his riding appearl with boots and Mama, in her gingham dress. They are not jointed because of the costuming. We had a local doll collector/teddy bear artist years ago named Helen Kirschnick. She did a great job on the making of teddy bears, but the real draw was what they were wearing. They all told a story. This is similar to your presentation family. Although I am not familiar with the artist, she certainly has a gift for fashion. The fur is an acrylic, and most likely they are poly stuffed. The Papa has acrylic felt clothes while the Mama bear has cotton and a apron or pinafore. The four smaller bears even seem to be jointed. The nose is handstitched cord and the eyes shoe buttons. I would say these were made in the 1990s, when teddy collecting was extremely popular. Many teddy bear artists enjoyed their gift of creating one of a kind, as well as doing multiple orders. Perhaps the original owners needed a safe place to store the bears, hence the Steiff box. Later examples of Steiff had a cloth bag for storage, with embroidered name plates. Collectors wanted more room for bears, not boxes! Value for your family would be $85.00.
Papa and Mama would be $30.00 each.
Brenda

Hi Brenda,

I purchased this bear on eBay
Previous owner won it in a competition over 50 years ago , and was being sold due to her passing. He is a lovely big boy 32" tall. 5-way jointed, s Solid wood filled bear with glass eyes and original stitching. I believe his covering to be mohair .
Pads are hard and they look painted to me. There are no claws.

Thank you,
Dawn

Hi Dawn,
A great teddy with a thoroughbred background! He is in the line of British makers with the coated pads, large tummy and upturned “Pooh” type nose. However, the triangular stiltched cord nose and elongated mouth qualify him for the Australian firm of Berlex. They were founded in the 1930s in Melbounre and continued into the the 1970s. Teddy bears from this continent had similarities to England. The pads are a vinyl fabric, heavily coated and durable. His stuffing is excelsior,
5 way jointed, and has a nice round tummy. The fur is mohair, and he is in very good condition. We can see why he took first place in competition! Glass eyes set outside the head seam with his cupped ears, make him very photogenic.
The real Pooh Bear was a Farnell teddy, with Merrythought and Berlex contributing their designs. Later models of Berlex had stationery heads, exhibiting a 4 way jointing. Your model dates to the 1930s and with his large 32” height, would be valued at $750.00 and up. Their ID was a cloth tag located on the right arm seam, reading Berlex in script or Berlex, Melbourne in capital letters.
Brenda

Hi Brenda,
This little bear was purchased via ebay from an Antique dealer in Glasgow who discovered it amongst a job lot from a house clearance.
Other than that I know nothing about the little bear or it's history. It was listed as Vintage mid century miniature mohair bear. 8" tall, well loved, pin jointed, wood filled bear with black eyes.

On receipt of the little bear I discovered that it has a working squeaker and On moving it's arms I found a turquoise thread poking out from under it's right arm.
Dawn

Hi Dawn,
This little guy is referred to as the “peanut” shaped bear, with a stationery head and movable arms and legs. Bing, a German Company, did an elaborate example of this type bear and some were mechanical. Petz, another German Co. also had a similar type design with sliced in ears. Yours seems to be a 1920s example of a Japanese type teddy with rods extended through the body for articulation of the limbs. In fact, the squeaker you mentioned was also used in American teddy bears, as we imported their voices! Many times this mechanism is non working, as the tightly sealed vessel develops an air hole, and then no voice! Glad yours still speaks. Production was quick, with the sliced in ears, yet a simple hand sewn nose and mouth to further dress his presence. The eyes seem to be shoe buttons, also hand sewn into place. The fur is a short mohair and he is stuffed with excelsior. No pads or claws, this center seam teddy is completely a sweetheart. Value would be $125.00.
Brenda

Hi Dawn,
This yellow example of the GOKRA maker of Germany is actually mentioned in their ad of teddy bears, with the gold yellow velour notation. It is very clean for a vintage bear, almost like it was unplayed with all these years! The cupped ears are also high on the head, handsewn with a slight tuck. This bear at 27” is quite large, and stands with the help of the cardboard inserts before the finishing pads were attached. The three claws are common for several German makers, most commonly- Hermann. The back seam is where the bear has a hand closed seam. The eyes seem to be amber glass, and sewn into place. You can tell glass from plastic eyes by the temperature they convey. Cold to the touch is glass, while plastic has a warmth. You can also feel the outer edge with your fingertip. A rough surface indicates plastic while a smooth surface points to glass. The black cord horizontal nose and mouth seems to be perfect for the finishing detail, matching the black pupils! The tear drop pads are felt. Five way jointed allows teddy to pose in various positions, while the excelsior stuffing keeps him firm. Value for Teddy would be $375.00.
Brenda

Hello Brenda,

I found this bear at my parents home. It belonged to my father and he had shown it to me several times. It’s been in storage approximately 70+ years. As best I can guess. I know very little about it. My father passed away in 2002. 2 years ago we cleaned out my mother’s home and found it. She’s been moved to assisted living. The bear is 10 inches long has jointed arms and leg. It does have a working squeaker.
As best I can tell it is Mohair and has glass eyes. It also appears to be filled with the excelsior. I’m wondering what it’s worth.

Thank you,
Robert

Hi Robert,
It is wonderful that he was preserved all these years! He is an American bear, from the Aetna Toy Animal Co., formerly called Keystone Bear. They produced bears during the early years, forming in 1907. They were only sold through the George Borgfeldt & Co, wholesalers. Their quality was excellent, with the finest mohair, wool felt pads (cardboard under the felt for standing), amber glass eyes, long arms, and a voice box. The hand closed seam is in the back of the body, while the vertical woven nose with cord is in very good condition. An extension for the inverted Y mouth is missing, but we can see the remnant yarn. The ears are somewhat to the side of the head, dating him to around 1908. The stuffing is excelsior. Originally teddy bears were made for boys, since girls had dolls. The association to Theodore Roosevelt also trended towards appealing to boys. However, the girls adopted their “New Love”, by Bessie Pease Gutmam, with the painting of a teddy being clutched by a little girl while her doll was sitting alone, The firm became known as Aetna Doll and Toy Co., then in 1919, E.I. Horseman purchased the company. If you had pictures of your Dad with teddy, that would add provenance. Value for the 10” Aetna would be $750.00.
Brenda

I have rescued this Teddy Bear from my Mum and Dad’s attic, it was on the way to the dump! The Teddy Bear’s height is around 45cm (18"). The head, arms and legs are jointed.

We are not sure where the Teddy Bear has come from and do not know much about him!

Hope you can shed some light on him and his chubby cheeks!
Many Thanks,
Donna

Hi Donna,
I had to smile when I saw your “Cheeky” teddy bear! I will enclose a picture of his cousin, as shown in the Linda Mullins Teddy Bears Past and Present, written in 1986. Within this book he is labeled as from 1930, and an unidentified maker. Many since have called these Dutch bears, with the large head, full cheeks and tin painted eyes. Arthur Van Gelden made bears from synthetic silk plush, firmly stuffed with excelsior, and five way jointed. The arms are short, and set high on the shoulder, while the legs are chubby and have slightly formed feet. Both pads on the limbs are contrasting silk plush with no claws. He has a finishing seam in the center back body. The tin eyes resemble the Berryman bear eyes, with the googly look. The left button eye seems original, the right has been repainted. He has a sweet smile, probably so happy to have those chipmunk cheeks! The nose and mouth are black cord. He dates to the 1930s, as this company was short lived and WWII, stopped production. Value for your 18” attic find is $150.00.

Brenda

Hi Brenda,
Here is the bear I would like you to look at. Top of head to feet 16”. Has strange almost triangle ears with the point in his head the ears don’t seem round on top but straight across. His fur seems like there are different color tones. Might be the light. When you squish his head it makes a crunch sound but you have to listen very close. Seems firm everywhere He was bought after 1939 up until 1944. The head can swivel side to side. Looks like there is a lot of hand stitching. I don’t know if the ribbon is original or not.
Valerie

Hello Brenda,
I recently found these two bears at an antique shop and am very interested in learning more about them. Both are between 17 3/4" -18" in height, stuffed with wood wool, disk jointed, and covered in mohair. Both also have small humps towards the top of their backs and hand-stitched noses. The first is missing both eyes, and has one paw ripped open. All pads look to have been originally made of blue fabric, but later covered with yellow felt. There is also a small bell stitched onto its neck. The second bear has a hole in one shoulder, is missing an ear, the stuffing from one foot, and one eye. The other eye is amber and black colored glass. There are also hand stitched claws on two of the feet. Most of the hair has fallen off both, and they are in less than ideal condition, with no tags to identify a brand. Any information you have about them would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

Treva

Hi Treva,
Your bears are very well loved!  The one on the left, is American- attributed to Ideal Novelty and Toy Co. with the stick like arms and legs, and football shaped body. He had glass eyes, amber with black pupils, a horizontal cord nose and had a mouth extension with the inverted V. We can still see the downward stitches in place. He dates to the 1920s with the shorter arms and a football shaped body. The pads are are replaced. Looks like he has some missing excelsior on the right paw. The metal bell was an add on, maybe his voice box was not working. Not sure if the blue fabric was original, most had a tan felt covering. Value would be $125.00.

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The bear to the right is German, and with the sliced in ears, most likely Petz. He seems to be winking with the left eye missing! The eye remaining is glass, a brownish red iris and black pupil. The nose is cord and sewn in the horizontal fashion. His arms are longer, and his right foot has a formed ankle. The left side could probably use excelsior in this area to reform his foot, ankle and pad restored. He dates to 1915, has claws and a wide neck joint. As is, he would be known as primitive and valued at $75.00.

Restoring could increase the value. The mouth extension was a small inverted V.
Brenda

Hello Brenda,

I’m looking for some help with a bear my grandmother has had for year and years. It has been well preserved and she told me that it is Steiff bear. I believe she acquired it at an auction 50+ years ago. She was meticulously storing this little bear and she was an extensive antique collector, so I’ve always assumed that she was correct, that it is indeed a Steiff bear. After doing some research, it appears to be an authentic bear, missing the tags, but may have a small hole in the ear where there was a tag and a string is still attached coming from the arm – but not sure if that was an original tag.

Hello Brenda,
This is my much played with and very beloved teddy named Honey. I believe he was given to me by my grandmother, Winnie Struve Taylor, when I was born in 1940. He has been packed away for about 60 years. I unpacked him recently. His sweet face and worn fur stirred memories of the joyful hours I spent playing with him. I now wish to know his history as eventually he will be passed on to my daughter and then to my granddaughter. He is fully articulated. a growler inside that I do not recall working. His stuffing appears to be kapok and excelsior. He has no evidence of ever having a tag and no stitched claws.
Dianne

Hi Brenda,

This guy or guys, I have 2 of the same bear but one is 1” shorter than the other, is 18” long (17”) Yellow/Golden Mohair, Disc jointed, appears to be some kind of velvet or vinyl type paw pad covering, 18” has plastic eyes I think, 17” has glass ( I just discovered that), nose is something weird plastic?, floss mouth, big squeakers, straw stuffing (see boo-boo picture) the 17” is much nicer overall. The color is more true in the first picture. Thanks!
Christy