SEVEN LOVELY BEARS #6 - Steiff Romeo & Juliet

This is an auction for two Steiff (Germany) mohair bears: Romeo & Juliet.

These bears were sold in a limited edition of 2000 by the London store Harrods.

This pair of Steiff bears is number 495 in the edition.

They are offered for sale with their original Certificate of Authenticity and in their original musical box. (The box plays Lionel Ritchie's tune "Endless Love".)

These bears are 22cms (9") tall.

From Wikipedia:

"German toymaker Margarete Steiff (1847-1909), born in Giengen, started creating toy stuffed animals in 1880 in the town of Giengen an der Brenz, Germany. Margarete was a seamstress and confined to a wheelchair, due to polio she contracted as a baby, she started making stuffed animals as a hobby. These toys began as elephants, which were originally a design Steiff found in a magazine and originally sold as pincushions to her friends. However, children began playing with them, and in the years following she went on to design many other successful animal-themed toys for children, such as dogs, cats and pigs. She designed and made most of the prototypes herself. In 1902, her nephew Richard Steiff designed their renowned teddy bear, which many people believe was one of the first. Today, the Steiff name is still well-known for quality but extremely expensive toys."

You can get more information about Steiff at its website, The World of Steiff:

http://shop.steiff.de/cgi-bin/steiffde.storefront/en/searchma
sk

These bears are in superb condition, with the mohair fully intact.

The cost of shipping within New Zealand is $7.95 (NI) or $10.95 (SI) - this is for sending via New Zealand Post, at your risk; sending by courier would cost a bit more, and I strongly recommend this in view of the value of this item.

Purchasers in Australia and elsewhere outside New Zealand must pay by Visa or Mastercard. Bidders in the UK may if they wish pay by deposit into my Barclays account.

Payment within seven (7) days, please.