NOT A ZOTTY.... WHO AM I?

by Anna J
(Currently AUSTRALIA)

BEAR1

BEAR1

My late grandfather gave me this bear in the early 60's, he received it from a friend that used to work for Steiff. The bear did have the button and the tag but both were lost through the years. My bear is in good shape other than I used to feed it my food so it's got a bit of staining to its open mouth. It also has a growler/squeaker in its chest. Oh yes and I will be bringing it back one day to the Steiff hospital for arm reattachment surgery. My kind little brother decided to pull it off one day back in the late 70's. But even the arm has been kept in great shape I always looked after all of my Steiff animals. And he was never allowed to touch it again. This bear happens to be my favorite. I'm unsure if this bear was ever considered a Zotty bear as I remember the tag having a different name on it. As the years have passed I have forgotten the name but I'm sure the name never started with a Z. Can anyone help please?

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Jun 17, 2021
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starstarstarstarstar 		My new findings on not a Zotty!
by: Anna

Thank you Bear Doctor, I will look that up. I was not long ago ( pre covid) to travel over seas and found a Zotty Bear. I purchased him because I saw him at a flea market for under 20 dollars. Hes in great shape Plus he has his button in the ear. After returning home I placed him next to my bear and compared the two. Funny enough the button was more towards the head of this new bear. So while comparing the two it made me look closer to my old bears ears. I found a tiny hole ( after all these years. It was very tiny so apparently I hadnt looked in the exact spot. I actually was surprised as I thought for sure I’d checked him so very carefully. The button is obviously not there but he has a hole. I also checked every other detail between the two bears and other than the patch under the chin on my newer bear they have all the same features eyes, open mouth, growl, nose stitching, paw pads and overall material is the same. So I’m going to assume both my bears are Steiff . I feel like you were saying they might have had differences. Which to me makes them far more special. I hope others can find what they are looking for too. Cheers and thank you all & happy hunting
Jun 15, 2021
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starstarstarstar 		Likely Stieff, but not Zotty
by: Bear Doctor

There are multiple books published by author Jean Wilson regarding the history and value of Stieff teddy bears. In these books, she has faithfully reproduced vintage Stieff toy catalogs (in black and white, not color). It's very likely you will find your bear in those pages, though it is clearly not a Zotty. It is also not a Hermann bear; Hermann bears usually have paw pads on all four paws (both 'hands' and 'feet'), while Stieff bears usually only have paw pads on the two 'feet' paws. Zotty bears always have the contrasting color 'bib' of plush beneath the chin, and your bear does not. But Stieff did make some bears that look very similar to Zotty bears (with the open mouth), some of which were wearing clothing. There should be other relevant details (perhaps a bell, rattle, or tilt growler) your photograph fails to convey, and I am confident Jean Wilson's books could help you to confirm the identity of your bear more conclusively if you give them a read. Good luck!
Feb 13, 2019
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starstarstarstarstar 		Hermann Bear
by: Anonymous

The bear in the picture was made in Germany by Hermann, not Steiff. A few companies such as Hermann, Anker and Clemens, etc copied the Steiff open mouthed Zotty bear in the 1950s and later. Zotty was created by Steiff in 1951 and continued to be made up until the 70s-80s.

You can tell it is not a Steiff bear because the Steiff version had a bib under his chin with a peachy, yellow colored mohair fur. If it did not have this colored bib it was not a Zotty bear. The Hermann version, including the other German makers did not have this different colored bib.

There are no Steiff bears that ever matched the exact design you have. Your bear is typical of the open mouthed bears made by Hermann in the 1960s. Hope this info helps.
Mar 20, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		Sandra
by: Anonymous/ Anna

Hello Sandra , here is my email waydwnin_cocamo@yahoo.com if you’d like to send me a photo of your bear I would appreciate the information.
Cheers Anna
Mar 20, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		Eve -Hermann
by: Anonymous\Anna

Hello Eve, is there any chance you could send me a photo of your Herman bear. I haven’t seen one even similar to my bear. My email is waydwnin_cocamo at yahoo.com I would really appreciate it
Mar 20, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		Hermann
by: Anonymous

I received this identicle bear in 1960/61 it is a hermann bear. It had a green and gold paper tag around it’s neck and a stud/button in the back of its head. These have long since gone however I can confirm it was definitely a Herman bear. A lot were sold in the sixties
Eve
Mar 14, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		Photo?
by: Sandra

I would be happy to show you a picture of my bear. I don't see how to attach it here. I provided information and a photo to this site yesterday, but I do not see it published.
Mar 13, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		Would love to see your bear Sandra
by: Anna J - Bear1

I would love to see a photo of your bear Sandra. I've not seen a Herman that would be like mine as of yet. I've heard of them looking similar as the competition was high back in the day. I am very happy to hear there are other people out there with similar bears.
Cheers
Anna
Mar 13, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		Similar story
by: Sandra

I have a similar bear and am trying to identify it as well. I received mine in the 60's from my father. I always thought it was a Steiff, but I can't find any hole that suggested there was a button in its ear. Mine is all one color, has a clipped snout, an open mouth and a very small amount of pink inside. The paws are a the same color as the mouth. It is about 14". It does look like a Hermann as well, but the hair is slightly shorter.
Mar 08, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		Not A Zotty....Who am I ?
by: Anna

TEDDY BEAR FRIEND, I would love to see a picture of yours. I've been looking into my bears' origin and one man in England had one but it lay flat on its tummy but had an open mouth he said his was a Herman bear but had no proof or tags to prove it. I had seen a photo of it but the fur wasn't same was quite a bit longer plus the head shape was sewn differently. Would yours have the different colour on its chest? Mine is all one multi-browny coloured coat and the feet, paws, and mouth are all creamy coloured fabric.
Mar 08, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		Teddy bear friend
by: Teddy bear friend

Hello,I have the same teddy bear and I would like to known more about him.
Thanks

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