RARE Uncatalogued Early 1950s Steiff Wool Plush Baby Lamb Lamm 1930s Shape All ID

This sweet baby is really special! I don’t have access to the actual Steiff catalogue for this era, but going by Pfeiffer, it appears that this lamb (Lamm) is not catalogued; at least Pfeiffer does not show a picture of it. He does list Lamm’s article number, 6514,0, which denotes her size as 14 centimeters. She is almost exactly in accord with that, measuring 5 1/2 inches to the top of her head.

Lamm’s exact body shape is the same as the “Lämmer (plural)” produced decades earlier. If you have Pfeiffer’s book for antique Steiff, you can see pictures.

Lamm’s flag very precisely dates her to no later than 1952, and, because of her raised script button, probably no earlier than 1951. She almost certainly had a US-Zone flag at one time, but there is no evidence of that now.

I can date Lamm so specifically because of the format of her flag. The font of her flag differs from the fonts of flags appearing in 1953 and after. One difference is the fact that the name “Steiff” is printed, not written in cursive script as it was in later years.

The second difference in her flag is the appearance of the word “geschützt,” which means “protected” and serves a similar function to the ® we associate with trademarks and the © we associate with copyright. This version of a Steiff animal’s flag ended in 1952, but it was used for decades earlier.

You’ll notice that I am referring to this sweet baby as “Lamm,” whose translation to “lamb” is obvious, but that distinction is important. Pfeiffer does note that “Lamby” started use in 1954. “Lamm” is a generic description of the KIND of animal this little sheep is, rather than a proper name, like “Lamby.” Because of this, I believe her button and flag constitute her complete IDs. “Lamm” is descriptive, like “Hase” for early Steiff rabbits. That means that Lamm did not have a chest tag.

OK, enough history! Lamm is in very good condition. My reason for downgrading her from “excellent” is the fading of some of her airbrushing. She still has ample rose coloring—on her face, on the underside of her ears, and on her feet. Since yellow is the first airbrush color to fade, it is understandable that Lamm’s yellow accents are not as strong as her rose accents. She does have a touch of yellow on the backs of her hind legs and on her feet. I am showing you a picture of her two back feet in my fifth composite image.

Also in that image is a teeny-tiny hole in the seam of her belly, close to her right front leg. The hole is smaller than the head of a pin. Right in front of it is also a teeny-tiny green mark. I am mentioning these “defects” 😉 for completeness, since, in addition to their size, they are out of view when Lamm is displayed!

Lamm’s wool plush is probably as white as it ever was, and it is pretty much complete, with some minor areas of thinning. It is really hard to say what might be thinning as opposed to the uneven nap of her wool plush covering.

Finally, Lamm has her original ribbon (a touch faded) and bell, which are tacked together to her chest. Her bell has almost no tarnish, and it retains its little clapper.

I can’t think of anything else you’d want to know, but if you have any questions, please write to me. Lamm is a rare and special animal, who would make a fantastic addition to your collection, or the collection of the Steiff lover in your life.

WHATEVER YOU DECIDE TO DO ABOUT LAMM 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 MARCH, 2023.