A rare Steiff Mickey Mouse
A rare Steiff Mickey Mouse

Details
A rare Steiff Mickey Mouse
with black and white velvet covered head and body, black felt ears, black 'cherry pie' eyes, black velvet 'button' nose, airbrushed facial features, pink velvet open mouth, yellow velvet glove hands, red velvet shorts with mother of pearl buttons, orange velvet card lined boots stamped on base, original tail, card swing tag and button in ear --8in. (22cm.) tall, circa 1931

See Colour Plate 8

Literature
Button In Ear, Jurgen & Marianne Cieslik, page 208 & 209

Lot Essay

Ub Iwerks created the most fascinating comic figure of all time, Mickey Mouse.

Walt Disney Studios produced two Mickey Mouse movies a month, and these were shown in theatres world wide. The popularity of this comical mouse soon swept through the Toy and Souvenir Industries. Naturally Steiff grasped hold of the potential.
Walt Disney sold all the commercial rights for Mickey Mouse to Geo. Borgfeldt & Co. in New York. One could only obtain a license to market 'Mickey' through the Borgfeldt Company. Steiff had a head start on their competitors in the race for marketing rights, for Borgfeldt had been Steiff's sole agent in America for decades. It was not long before the first examples of Mickey Mouse left the Toy Factory in Giengen. In various sizes, almost 30,000 pieces were manufactured in 1931.

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