I would really like some help figuring out when and where he was made. I bought him a few days ago at an estate sale. Unfortunately, the owner of the estate had passed at 90 years and she left behind thousands of Steiff, MerryThought, Nettee, and other high-quality bears and animals she had collected throughout her life. This Bear drew my attention more than any other. He is old. He has shoe-button eyes. Orange/Golden long mohair. He has excelsior wood straw filling and all his limbs and head are jointed. He is approx 23” tall and has a growler inside his chest that still works. 🤩 He has had some pads re-patched. His nose stitching is mainly a vertical criss-cross and he has a bald snout. On his hands he has 3 stitches and on his feet he has 5 stitches, although the nose stitches and paw stitches may not be original. He has long arms and large ears. Interestingly, he has no tags or marks other than a Theriault’s Auction tag on his arm with the #71. No other info. I was able to email Florence Theriault at Theriault’s and she said: “Hello Blake, I’d like to help you, but there is only this clue re. searching old catalog entries: we have not used this particular Theriault tag shown for about ten years. so searching for the lot #71 would be most futile, I’m afraid. The color (of remaining) mohair is very vibrant and beautiful and you have a charming bear. Good luck in your searches!” Florence | FLORENCE THERIAULT | [email protected] | Ph. 410.224.3655 I was also able to text Rebekah ‘Steiffgal’ Kaufman and she replied to me: “I think based on the size and shape and color, this guy is probably made by an American company (perhaps Ideal, due to the embroidery pattern on the feet) and probably from the c. 1919-1925 time frame.” He has no other tags or marks or buttons on him. So I don’t know who to talk to to be sure about him, but I’m on the hunt for his genealogy. I would also like to know if he should be restored or remain as is. Thank you for any help you can give.

Approx 24" tall and weighs about 5 lbs