The Toy Auctioneer to host Dec. 12 debut auction of antique teddies and soft toys with online bidding through LiveAuctioneers.com
Dec. 5, 2007
Former Christie’s South Kensington toy, doll and teddy specialist Daniel Agnew heads new operation
LONDON - Following its launch in September, The Toy Auctioneer is pleased to confirm its first-ever teddy bear sale will take place on Dec. 12. Potential bidders can preview the 130 bear lots and bid absentee or live online on auction day through www.LiveAuctioneers.com and bid absentee or live via the Internet on auction day through the same Web site.
Bear collectors are eagerly anticipating this sale, as it will fill the void left when Christie’s South Kensington announced the closure of its Collectables department. This closure meant there would no longer be a December bear sale, which was always a special event on the collector’s calendar. The Toy Auctioneer has brought together some exciting pieces for its auction debut. Director Daniel Agnew, said: "After just a month and half at The Toy Auctioneer, I am delighted with what we have achieved. Putting together over 130 rare and interesting lots of antique and vintage teddy bears and soft toys; and building the framework for a first-class teddy bear, doll and toy website is really an achievement. I am sure this new venture will just grow and grow."
The sale is guaranteed to be a real delight for arctophiles and has a number of interesting lots, for example:
Two Steiffs complete with Atlas and photographs are estimated at $1,400-$2,000. This lot tells the wonderful and fascinating story of Hannelore Schoknecht, a little girl who lived in Schwerin, Mecklenburg in North Eastern Germany, and her bear ‘Petsy’ that was given to her in 1928.
Her favorite toy, Hannelore took Petsy everywhere and he was her companion during her school years, where she boarded in Gernode, in the Harz Mountains. In April 1945, towards the end of the war, from her school she could hear the advancing Allied Forces. She decided she had to make it home. So, on her bike with her school atlas (also part of this lot) as her guide, she and Petsy embarked on the incredible journey home. It took them over a month, sleeping rough but she was finally reunited with her family in May 1945.
The whole family took with it a few possessions, including the bears, then travelled the short distance to Luebeck, the British sector. They spent the next couple of years in a refugee camp, where she met her husband, a British soldier. This is what finally bought her to Britain, where Petsy and Hannelore stayed, in Liverpool, until Hannelore died in 2007.
A very rare black Steiff teddy bear with original button, circa 1909, is estimated at $12,000-$16,000. It is believed that Steiff’s black bear was originally created in 1912 to commemorate the loss of life on the Titanic. But, a very small number of bears have turned up, which possibly pre-date this. These bears are even rarer, although there are no records of when they actually were produced.
All of the furry lots can be viewed online at www.LiveAuctioneers.com and an extensive illustrated feature on the sale's highlights appears online at www.toycollectormagazine.com
