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This
beautiful old Steiff bear dates from 1908. 22 inches tall , he has the classical
features of the grand old bears of yore. His eyes are original , boot buttons
, used in the early bears predating World War 1 , and he retains his original
nose stitching. He has light gold mohair, faded with time, and wonderful long
arms and legs , a prominent muzzle and a prominent hump. He has four claws each
on his paws and feet, and he still has his tin button in his left ear with the
Steiff underscore logo .  Steiff
underscore button |  Click
to supersize | He
has a tilt growler in his body but he has long since lost his voice . His tilt
growler makes a "knocking" sound as it rattles within his woodwool-stuffed
body, adding to his charm. |
Click
picture to supersize it | 
This
dear old bear belonged to the boy in the pictures who lived to his late 90's in
the United States of America. He got this bear as a young boy, named him "
Teddy Boy ", and loved him dearly. The boy kept
" Teddy Boy " with him all his life, and the photos as well. Towards
the end of his life, when he became ill and had to live in a nursing home, his
daughter kept " Teddy Boy " but sold much of her father's estate. It
was only much later that she also reluctantly decided to sell " Teddy Boy
" with the old photos. It has been several
years since he was separated from his beloved owner of more
than 90 years, and " Teddy Boy " has now found his home in My Teddy
Bear Museum, where he will be cared for and loved as much as his owner had loved
him all these long years. |
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One
beautiful teddy bear.... One
little boy who never forgot the joy of his childhood companion... 90
years of whispered memories... |  Click
picture to supersize it | As
the curator of My Teddy Bear Museum, I often wish that there was some way to record
the stories behind the old bears and their owners, but sadly, as in this case,
we do not even know the name of Teddy Boy's owner. They
often say that a picture tells a thousand words, and the picture of Teddy Boy
and his owner speaks volumes of the joys of childhood, and of a boy who would
love his teddy bear for 90 long years.... |
 | | We
seldom have the chance to document the history of a vintage bear, but in Teddy
Boy, we have a unique opportunity to compare photos of what he looked like in
1908 and what he is like today. Teddy
Boy has aged beautifully with the passage of time. His muzzle has lost much of
its mohair, the result without doubt of having been kissed a lot by his owner
over the years. His feet have settled into a comfortable floppy position from
over 90 years of sitting , and his paw and foot pads show much wear from having
been played with. Inspite
of wear , Teddy Boy has not lost any of his charm and character that was so obvious
in 1908 , even though 93 years have passed. |
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