Searching for rare variations of smurfs is interesting and exciting when it leads to a find.
My Smurf passion are the PVC Figurines. A few years ago I made a decision about collecting smurf merchandise and decided to stick to the figurines. Lucky for me this was long before the release of the 2011 movie. Since then I have continued to learn about all the different variations out there and believe me there are plenty.
Though one of the most interesting ones is Papa Smurf (Schleich Reference Number 20001). Papa Smurf was first released in 1969 by Schleich. The early version was made out of blue pvc material and has it’s right arm held slightly higher, almost looking like he has his elbow is bent. The other stand out feature is his red tail!
At some point, they added the markings Schleich emblem and W.Germany to under the feet. The Peyo (c) marking was still on the back of the right arm. The tail remained red!
Approximately around 1972 Schleich changed the mold for Papa Smurf. It also appears they removed the Peyo (c) from the back of the arm and added this to under the feet. So it had Peyo (c) W.Germany under the right foot and Schleich Emblem under the left foot. The figurine was made out of a red pvc material. The right arm is positioned slightly lower and has almost been unchanged ever since. You could almost say that the arm is positioned straight. However for a brief period the tail remained red!
Some time after this year Papa Smurf’s tail changed to blue. Since then you will only find Papa Smurf merchandise with a blue tail. Check it out for yourself. I am unsure why it changed or who decided to change Papa Smurf’s tail from red to blue. Though for those die hard collectors if you come across a Papa Smurf with a red tail, there is a good chance you are in the possession of a rare Papa Smurf!
For those who collect smurfs for their markings:
Peyo (c) on the back of the right arm
Schleich emblem W.Germany under the feet. Peyo (c) on the back of the right arm.
Schleich emblem W.Germany Peyo (c) under the feet
For some more information on Papa Smurf, see his listing at wikipedia for loads more info.
Keep on Smurfin
Kath