Schuco Figures


One of the most prolific of the German toymakers, with a readily identifiable style was Schuco. Founded in November 1912 in Nuremberg, it originally traded as Schreyer and Company, changing the name to Schuco in 1921. Heinrich Müller, one of the original partners, had worked for Gebrüder Bing, one of the most important of the Nuremberg toymakers, but the new firm aimed at producing more light-hearted toys. Heinrich Schreyer, prior to joining the company had worked as a furniture salesman and left in 1918 to be replaced by a wholesaler, Adolf Kahn.

Their first figures, shown in a 1913 catalogue, were hopping animals that ran along on their leads, cats playing with balls, a football player and other novelties. During the Great War, it appears that production ceased, restarting in 1919 and from this period, the figures that are so characteristic of the firm first appeared. Made of tinplate and covered with plush and felt, and these are typical of a period across the world when novelty and amusement were paramount. For the flappers, there were compacts and manicure sets, disguised within a monkey or a Teddy bear, while the young men could carry a small bottle of whiskey concealed within a larger mascot. “Automato” policemen, clowns and bellhops, all of which ran on roller skate feet, were a delight for the children, as well as the “Acrobato” bears and characters that performed on bars. Schuco were particularly proud of the fact that their toys were entirely produced in their own factory and that all their complex mechanisms were patented. The finest materials were used, including mohair plush, good felts, velvets and worsted and this attention to quality has meant that many examples from the early 1920s have survived in excellent condition.

While the company also made many transport toys, it is the figures that now command the highest prices, such as the Boxer-Champion, a figure of the Devil and Charlie Chaplin, all of which can now sell in excess of £1,000 ($1600). The Chaplin figure is particularly unusual, in that it is one of the few toys identifiably based on a person and is reasonably accurate in the portrayal. The head and body are made of tinplate and the figure is dressed in a black woollen suit and wears a black bowler hat. It shuffles along, wobbling from side to side in a reasonable imitation of Chaplin’s walk, and twirls a cane carried in the right hand, as was seen at the end of many of Chaplin’s films.

Picture shows the clockwork Schuco Charlie Chaplin figure. 7ins. High. Courtesy Jane Vandell Associates