By: Ann Brandt

As seen in The Antique Shoppe Newspaper, April 2005

The year 2005 marks the 70th anniversary of Hummels, those delightful little figures of happy children. The selection of Hummel products grows more diverse every year. Now we have Hummel calendars, afghans, nativity scenes, and villages, to name a few. A Goebel Bee Pin, introduced in 2001, retailed at $20. (Hummel means bee in German.)

You can join a Hummel club, and as a new member receive an authentic Hummel gift figurine, and redemption certificates for exclusive editions. The club magazine-Insights--and current price list is mailed four times a year to members. Periodically, local retailers host events for club members where traveling artists demonstrate their craft and sign pieces purchased at the store. Call 1-800-666-CLUB for details or go to the Hummel web site at www.mihummel.com and view a list of retailers in your area.

Hummel figurines began with a talented little girl in Bavaria, a place many people associate with children and fairy tales. Berta Hummel was born on May 21, 1909, the third daughter of Adolf and Viktoria Hummel. Like many families of that time and place, the Hummel family had deep roots in the Catholic Church. By the time Berta was five, she was drawing on all the scrap paper she could find and gathering scraps of cloth to make clothes for her dolls. Berta was so busy that she soon earned the family nickname Das Hummele--busy bee.

When World War I ended, Berta was accepted into the Institute of English Sisters. There, her artistic ability was channeled into projects that benefited the entire school. She first became interested in watercolors, than branched out into sculpting animals and faces, then she began using her imagination to create pen and ink illustrations of famous German fairy tale characters.

On April 22, 1931, Berta entered the Franciscan Convent at Siessen and in August 1935 became Sister Maria Innocentia. During those years she had created a series of drawings to amuse and reward the children she was teaching. She took these drawings to a symposium of lay and religious teachers where the art was very well received. Soon her work was appearing on postcards throughout Germany and in a children's book.

Meanwhile, in a small town east of Coburg, the W. Goebel porcelain manufacturing firm was struggling to regain postwar financial security. Late in 1934, after discussions between Sister Maria Innocentia and Franz Goebel, the Siessen Convent agreed to permit W. Goebel to manufacture ceramic figurines modeled from her two-dimensional drawings, with the Convent holding final approval of all figurine designs, just as it does today.

In March 1935 the first M. I .Hummel figures were put on display for export at the Leipzig Trade Fair. The trademark and name are protected internationally. The figurines arrived in America in May 1935 and were accepted by the American collectors' market with enough success to warrant W. Goebel's considering the manufacture of new designs based on Sister's sketches. These original seven M. I .Hummel figurines, models HUM 1 through HUM 10, include some of the most popular and sought after models on the collecting scene today.

During 1936, demand on the export was so great that Franz Goebel asked the Siessen Convent for permission to make several new figurines from Sister's artwork. One of the biggest outlets at that time was the Marshall Field and Company in Chicago, the largest department store in the Midwest.

However, from 1937 Sister Innocentia's health began to fail. In 1940 the Nazis took over the Convent and all the Sisters dispersed. Sister Innocentia went to live with her family, returning shortly to the Convent to care for the sick. She had to give up her studio and live in a damp basement room. Food and fuel were in short supply and Sister developed chronic tuberculosis, incorrectly diagnosed as a lung infection. She spent her last years sketching local children and died on November 6, 1946 at the Siessen convent.

When the United States Army occupied the Coburg area, production at the Goebel plant had already stopped and the firm was on the verge of collapse. By a quirk of fate, when lines were drawn up, the town of Oeslau and the Goebel factory were left in a pocket surrounded on three sides by communist East Germany. However, the U.S. Military Government quickly agreed to grant Goebel a permit to manufacture and export M. I.. Hummel figurines and other collectibles. Some of the first postwar collectors were the GIs stationed in Germany during the American occupation.

By 1949 the Federal Republic of GerI11any had been formed, the Marshall Plan was sparking reconstruction, and production at W. Goebel was in full swing. American service men were buying, collecting, and bringing Hummel figurines back home. In 1952 the U.S. Treasury Department designated M. I.. Hummel figurines as works of art.

There are figurines on the market that resemble Hummels but only true Hummels have the trademark on the bottom. The bee as trademark did not appear until 1950. Prior to that, the shape of a small crown appears in varying positions. From 1950 until 1956 a "full bee" appears inside a V. In 1957 the bee became smaller (stylized) and in 1964 the words by W Goebel W. Germany were added in three lines beside the bee. In 1972 the bottom of the figurine contained the word Goebel in large letters with a small bee in a small V. Through the 1980s the bee in its V were eliminated. Now only a small bee appears.

Some variations exist. For example, recent figurines include the word Germany on the bottom. Figurines have the mold number and year stamped on the bottom as well. Values for older Hummels run from approximately two hundred dollars to well over a thousand dollars. The trick in figuring value is to know the name given to the figurine, the mold number and the trademark variation. When shopping for Hummels it's wise to take along a comprehensive price list. Bargains can be found for the know ledge able collector.

Some of the 70th Anniversary Collection

For Hummel's 70th anniversary six figurines, available in February, have been cast from copies of the 1935 molds that were recently discovered at the Convent of Siessen where they had been stored since World War ll. The only changes are in subtle differences in painting details. This year the first introductions in editions limited to less than 2,000 are:

Chimney Sweep (original 1935 name Smoky)..........................................................$379.00
Bookworm Bookend, Boy (original 1935 name Leamed Man..................................$429.00
'" Bookworm Bookend, Girl....................................................................................$429.00
Prayer Before Battle................................................................................................$259.00
Lullaby Candleholder...............................................................................................$329.00
Wayside Devotion...................................................................................................$799.00
Available in July 2005:
Merry Wanderer.....................................................................................................$339.00
A Commemorative Edition available in February 2005:
Latest News, Leipzig Fair made from original 1946 molds and features a reproduction of an actual Leipzig newspaper from 1935, announcing the introduction of M. I. Hummel figurines at the Leipzig Trade Fair.