Some Schneegass Dolls' House Furniture

I was recently very pleased to identify some of my dolls' house furniture as being from the German maker Gebr. Schneegass.

Gebr. Schneegass was based in the town of Waltershausen in Thuringia (central Germany) and was founded in 1845 as D. Schneegass & Söhne. [For those who don't speak German, 'Gebr.' is an abbreviation of the German 'Gebrüder' or 'Brothers', and 'Söhne' is German for 'Sons'.] 

For one year, from 1909 to 1910, Gebr. Schneegass joined forces with Carl Schmidt and traded as Vereinigte Spielwarenfabriken GmbH (United Toymakers Ltd) but from 1911, the two companies parted ways and Schneegass continued under its own name again.

I don't think it's known exactly when the company finally stopped trading, but it was certainly after 1938.

[Information from Lexicon der Puppenstuben und Puppenhäuser by Marianne Cieslik/Swantje Köhler, 2003, unfortunately now out of print*].

1920s Gebr. Schneegass Sideboard

(Catalogue No. 5C 6)

Photo © Zoe Handy

It was as I was browsing the Lexicon mentioned above, that I happened to see a catalogue photograph of this sideboard which I’ve had for some time.

The sideboard, with its typically Art Nouveau motifs embossed in the doors, was shown in a Gebr. Schneegass catalogue from the 1920s.

This was a surprise to me as I have, until now, associated the name 'Schneegass' very much with the much lighter furniture often referred to as 'golden oak' or 'yellow cherry', and the distinctive imitation rosewood and ebony pieces in the Biedermeier style (sometimes with gilt transfer embellishments often referred to as 'Boulle').

A closer examination of the catalogue pages in the book then followed and I was even more surprised to find that I own quite a few of the pieces shown there.

And here they are:

1920s Gebr. Schneegass China Cabinet

(Catalogue No. 5N 1½)

Photo © Zoe Handy

1920s Gebr. Schneegass Drop-leaf Table

(Catalogue No. 5CC 1½)

Photo © Zoe Handy

1920s Gebr. Schneegass Mirror-back China Cabinet

(Catalogue No. 5N 6 or 5NN 1¾)

Photo © Zoe Handy

The cabinet in the photo above is shown in the catalogue in two sizes (No. 5N 6 being the larger) and I'm not sure which one mine is, though it isn't particularly big at 11.3 cm H x 10 cm W and 3.1 cm D (4.5" x 4" x 1¼"). Mine is marked 2/- (two shillings) on the back in pencil.

1920s Gebr. Schneegass Carver Chair

(Catalogue No. 5M 2½)

Photo © Zoe Handy

1920s Gebr. Schneegass Armchair

(Catalogue No. 5M 2½)

Photo © Zoe Handy

The armchair in the photo above is the same as in the catalogue but the upholstery fabric is different - the catalogue is in sepia so I can't say what the colour of the fabric is, though it does appear to be lighter.

I also have this same chair with green felt upholstery and will add a photo of it as soon as I find it!

1920s Gebr. Schneegass Gramophone

(Catalogue No. 27/5)

Photo © Zoe Handy

Although the catalogue photo is rather dark, I believe that this is the gramophone shown.

1920s Gebr. Schneegass Gramophone - Inside

(Catalogue No. 27/5)

Photo © Zoe Handy

The staining on the pieces shown above generally has a red tinge to it, which has led to it being termed 'German Red Stained', particularly in the US.

The red stain isn't obvious on all of the pieces, for instance the sideboard shown in my first photo above.  I don't know if this is down to age, wear, a previous owner using a darker polish on it, or if it started out this way.

1920s Gebr. Schneegass Corner Cupboard

Photo © Zoe Handy

The small-scale (11cm or 4¼" H) corner cupboard in the photo above has a very red hue and the red staining even coats the cupboard handles, giving them a coppery look.

This cupboard isn't in the Cieslik/Köhler Lexicon catalogue photos, however, it is shown in The Goodman House Museum by Libby Goodman (published in 2008 by Swantje Köhler) and named as circa 1920 Schneegass (source not given).

None of the pieces I own are signed by the manufacturer in any way.

I posted photos of my pieces in an online collectors' group I'm a member of and Swantje Köhler, who luckily is also a member, kindly gave us a couple of hints for identifying these later Schneegass pieces:

This foot shape is a good indication that a piece is early 20th C Schneegass

Photo © Zoe Handy

The feet seen on the sideboard in the photo above and on several of the other pieces shown earlier (the two sideboards and the carver chair), are very typical of Schneegass from this period.

Embossed Art Nouveau Motifs on Schneegass Furniture

Photo © Zoe Handy

In 1904, Schneegass apparently obtained a patent for a particular method of embossing polished wood and this feature is seen on much of the company's furniture from that point on. 

This decorative embossing, was advertised as a speciality of Vereinigte Spielwarenfabriken GmbH (the 1909-10 Schneegass/Carl Schmidt collaboration mentioned earlier) and the dressing table and the chest of drawers shown below are thought to be from that collaboration. Certainly, a very similar dressing table is shown in a Vereinigte Spielwarenfabriken advert from that time - the dressing table in the ad has the same pattern embossed along the top of the mirror and on the drawer-fronts, but is a slightly more elaborate piece than mine because it has a small jewellery drawer at the base of each of the mirror uprights.

Embossed Dressing Table, c1910 

Vereinigte Spielwarenfabriken GmbH (Schneegass/Carl Schmidt Collaboration)

Photo © Zoe Handy

There is also an example of this same dressing table (a whole bedroom set, in fact) in Antique & Collectible Dollhouses and Their Furnishings by Diane Zilner and Patty Cooper, 1998, which is stained/lacquered entirely in the red stain which we see on the front edges of the drawer sides in the photo above.

 

Embossed Chest of Drawers, c1910

Vereinigte Spielwarenfabriken GmbH (Schneegass/Carl Schmidt Collaboration)

Photo © Zoe Handy

The chest of drawers shown above has the same embossed pattern on it as the dressing table, though it's probably from a different year or set as it doesn't have the same red stain on the front edges of the drawer sides.

Embossed Cheval Mirror, c1910

Vereinigte Spielwarenfabriken/Gebr. Schneegass

Photo © Zoe Handy

And the cheval mirror shown above has the same embossed pattern along the top as the the dressing table. This piece, is more like the  'golden oak' or 'yellow cherry' furniture I've previously associated with the name Schneegass.

Embossed Chest of Drawers and Dressing Table, c1910

Vereinigte Spielwarenfabriken GmbH (Schneegass/Carl Schmidt Collaboration)

Photo © Zoe Handy

And this is the same chest of drawers and dressing table as shown above, but it seems the company also sold them in this white painted finish with the embossed details (or a simplified version of them) highlighted in gold.

So, that's all of the pieces in my collection that I can identify as early 20th century Schneegass, though this has now got me looking at other pieces in my collection and wondering if they might be Schneegass too and hopefully, one day, I'll find out!

Until next time,

Zoe

*Swantje Köhler has recently announced that she's planning to rewrite Lexicon der Puppenstuben und Puppenhäuser, to include new material that she's acquired since its original publication - great news!