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Crysty Feb 20, 2014

I have been looking all over and can not find anything about these bears.  The 2 bigger ones have wind up music boxes(both working).
The larger bear is a coarse grey fur with small hump on back, jointed with no tags and plastic nose.  The head, arms and legs are very firm when squeezed
The other one is a softer shorter fur and jointed with no tags and his bottom seems to go unusually lower than what I ihave seen on other bears.
The third bear is not music box and not really fur, more of a felt like feel. not jointed and firm when squeezed.  She has a long dress with knickers under it and a small teddy bear in her arm, no tags .
Any information on these three characters would be really appreciated.  I recently got 4 bins of bears when my mother passed and I am trying to get an idea of whether I need to add them to insurance.  Wow is there a lot to figuring out teddy bears.  My hats off to those of you that have been doing this for any length of time.  How do you do it?  My brain is scrambled after only a couple of weeks.

Copi Khatz Creations Feb 22, 2014

Hi Crysty,
The first clue I look for with bears is the fur, as this gives a good indication of age. After WWII bear companies started experimenting with a lot of synthetic furs like nylon plush; earlier bears are usually made of mohair, with short, bristly mohair in times of scarcity. Your large blue bears looks to me like a post-war bear because it has a plastic safety nose, which seemed to come into vogue around the 60s-70s. Take a closer look at its muzzle - if it's made of synthetic fur the pile will be very dense; with mohair it will be sparser. Judging by the inclusion of a music box, I would guess that this bear - as well as the brown boy bear - are factory made. The face of the brown boy bear looks similar to English bears of the post-war period.
The little girl bear looks like she might be home-made, judging by the fabric and the detail in her clothes - almost like she was a doll for a child to play with. Pull gently at her seam and you should be able to tell if she was hand-stitched - if the stitches are quite large and very even they are made by machine (either in a factory or on a home sewing machine).
I am certainly no expert on bear collecting, but I had a friend who used to sell them and the prices they fetched for post-war bears were about £20-50 GBP, depending on condition. (Those prices are for a fairly poor example, to be honest!)
To get an assessment from an expert you might like to try sending your photo to 'Teddy Bear and Friends' magazine - I think they have a section for identifying reader's bears. 'The Teddy Bear Encyclopaedia' is also a good resource. A collector's fair might also be useful, if you can get hold of someone who knows their bears. 
hope this helps a little. Best of luck with your investigation!
Claire.

dangerbears Feb 22, 2014

All three appear to be handmade, in my opinion.  (It's easy to slip a music box in before you close up the back seam.) They probably wouldn't have a high monetary value.

You might use Claire's tips to search for bears that are made from mohair, or that are old, or that are very finely made. Those could have more value. You could also spend some time observing what's on ebay (and what actually sells) to get a feel for the marketplace.

Good luck!
Becky

Crysty Mar 3, 2014

Thank you for the help.  There are probably 6 bins of Bears that we are going through of all different style and sizes. Many of them are gund and boyds bears.  There is a very nice Merrythought London Guard bear that is similar to some other I have seen on line but has a few differences.  More buttons, a belt, different hat.  I wrote to Merrythought and someone ther was going to get back to me about him.  There is also a small Dakin which struck me.  It feels like it is quite solid or stuffed with a more firm material and is jointed but only about 6 inches tall.  Havent seen any like her.
I also found one that I am posting pictures in hope of finding something out