50 Year Old Teddy Bear

by Kathryn Paillin
(TS10 2DR)

Hi I have had my teddy for as long as I can remember which is about 50yrs now and he was handed down to me so I believe him to be a lot older than that. He is a golden brown bear 14 inchs long. His arms and legs are all 6inch long and so is his centre body. The pads on his hands and feet have a velvety feel but I am not sure whether it is velvet or not. The joints on his neck, arms and legs are pairs of round metal discs which are still in very good condition with the head and limbs still moving smoothly and freely even at his great age. I do not know what filling my teddy is stuffed with but it feels like some kind of straw or tiny pieces of wood chipping when you squeeze him.

On one occasion when I was about 7 I remember I left him outside in the rain. This ruined the music box in his torso as it went rusty. My mum took the music box out and sewed him up again. I think she put some of our own stuffing in as the missing music box left him a bit flat. I think his eyes are plastic and seem to be in two parts, the outer eye fixed into an inner stud or holder, they are brown with black centres and still firmly fixed on. His nose is sewn on and is made of material. I am not sure what his fur is made of as he is fairly bald. He still has a fair bit of fur on his back and his legs which will hopefully help to identify what kind of fur it is.

With him being so old there are no tags or anything on him which could identify him and tell me his origins which is a shame. He's a little battered and worse for wear but he has been here there and everywhere with me he has never been out of my sight. I love him as much as I loved him when I was young, he's listened to me on my sad days and been there on my happy days. I could never part with him but would really like to know what his real age is and history of how and when he was made and by whom. Even if he isn't valuable or antique,he is still the real deal and very special to me.

I would be very grateful if someone could help me identify him.