Rare Handsome Early Steiff Leo Lion Wild Cat Hand Puppet ID

This wild cat is either the father or the mate of my other lion puppet. If you read that description, you know my maneless lion puppet is either a cub or Lea, hence Leo’s two possible familial relationships. 🙂

Leo has only his button, but it is not easily visible since it is in the middle of his ear and hidden by his mane. The button has the earlier kind of raised script, with skinny letters. That feature, Leo’s cardboard finger tube, and his glass eyes almost certainly mean that he was made in one of the two earliest series of this puppet: The earliest article number that could have been on Leo’s flag was “318,” signifying that he was made in 1958. The other article number was “0318,00,” which was the number used between 1959 and 1964. Even at his youngest, Leo is nearing the end of his sixth decade.

Leo has a few condition issues, but I would say he is in good condition. I make that assessment DESPITE his age, not the meaningless “for his age” you see so often. I evaluate an animal’s age on an absolute scale, comparing all animals by the same criteria, no matter when they were made.

Perhaps Leo’s main issue is the wear on his muzzle and chin, which I am showing you in my second (composite) image. Along with the wear in his mohair went the disappearance of Leo’s whiskers. I am happy to report I gave him new ones; there are six on each side.

Two of Leo’s other issues are also on his face. Leos dark brown and black airbrushed accents are still apparent, but they were once even darker. The fading also affected the color of his floss nose. The threads of his nose are absolutely intact, but his black nostrils, while still visible, are also subdued.

Leo’s other facial issue is the really tiny moth kisses on his right cheek. You can see them in my sixth image, shown to you with a red arrow. It is hard to tell whether there are two or three, but in any case, you should see how small they are.

Leo has two other issues, both of which are at the level of nitpicking. Leo has some additional really tiny moth kisses on the left side of his back. You can see the largest in my seventh image, also pointing out that kiss with a red arrow.

Finally, not very significant is the fact that Leo’s long, auburn-tipped mane hairs on the back of his head also show a bit of thinning. I believe it is highly likely that you would display Leo facing front, so this thinning would not show when he is on display. In addition, as you can see in my inset, you can comb his hair to minimize the look of the thinned area. I added that after all my pictures were complete.

I mentioned his auburn-tipped mane, but the color is darker and closer to maroon than auburn. And color is Leo’s really nice attribute and the reason I believe it is accurate to say that he is in good condition, despite the slight fading in his face. I think you can see that clearly in my pictures. Notice the dark airbrushing on his back and his dark paw pads.

[SOOOOO trivial that I forgot to mention it and am now revising this description is the fact that the back-painted amber iris of Leo’s left eye has two teeny tiny areas of wear, showing the clear glass underneath the paint.]

I am describing Leo under the presumption that he will stay in the vitrine of an adult collector. Although toy safety standards for children are much stricter than they were when Leo left Giengen, YOU can take Leo out occasionally and put him through his Thespian paces to entertain a child in your household. I am giving you some ideas for moods and feelings you can make him express. I am sure you can think of others.

Whether your thing is lions or puppets, this wonderful piece of Steiff history will do your collection proud. If you can bear to give him up when he arrives, the Steiff collector in your life will be absolutely delighted. And if you are in a puppet frame of mind, please take a look at my others, especially Leo’s non-identified relative!

WHATEVER YOU DECIDE TO DO ABOUT LEO OR ANY OF MY OTHER STEIFF ITEMS, PLEASE BE SURE TO SEE THE ARTICLE I HAVE WRITTEN ABOUT STEIFF ID FRAUD—INCLUDING COUNTERFEIT CHEST TAGS—(AND OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR COLLECTORS). YOU WILL FIND THE LINK ON THE BOTTOM RIGHT OF MY SHOP HOME PAGE UNDER “FAVORITE LINKS.” IF YOU HAVE NOT LOOKED AT IT RECENTLY, I UPDATED AND EXPANDED IT IN DECEMBER, 2022.