After the dramatic sinking of the “Titanic” in 1912, Steiff produced black Teddy bears for the very first time to reflect the mood of the grieving nation of Great Britain. These “mourning bears” have remained in the memory of many people to this day. In 1912, the whole country was in mourning, there was hardly a single well-situated family who had not lost a relative or friend. Every thing and everyone was in black, including the Steiff Bear with bear with "red-cried" eyes!
More than Twenty years ago, in May 2001, one of the original Steiff Titanic Bears, (picture below) came up for auction at Christies. The fortunate winner paid GBP 12,925 for the stunning original Steiff 1912 mohair Bear, which is approximately $23,000 Australian.
In 2023 Steiff are releasing a new version of the Iconic Bear.
This time the beautiful black bear with its copper-backed, “red-cried” eyes not only honours the the memory of the people aboard the “Titanic” but all of those grieving a loved one. This Steiff 2023 black bear also looks to the future with hope, as it is part of the Steiff “Teddies for Tomorrow” series.
