My husband's oldest sister died on January 22nd. She moved to her Grace Village apartment about 5 1/2 years ago so we had lots of interactions. I greatly miss her as she was not only my sister-in-law but a good friend as well.
I heard about people asking for and taking some of her things. I asked myself what would make a good remembrance for me. I associated her with Hummel figurines because she had a collection, most of them gifts from her husband I believe. When she moved from her Warsaw condo to her apartment I helped her wrap in tissue and cardboard these Hummels. I never really studied them so had no particular figurine in mind, but decided I would ask for one.
Her daughter had taken them to Michigan with the goal of selling them. I asked for a small girl figurine. She brought 3 to the memorial service on February 5th, and I made my selection.
Other than knowing they were manufactured in Germany and were child figurines, I knew little about them. I did some research on the internet.
My little girl is labelled Sister. Around the edge of the base is incised M. I . Hummel. The artist who had painted the children requested that her name be on the figurines to show she approved of the product. Berta Hummel showed artistic skills as a child and when she attended a formal art school she boarded with a group of nuns. She felt called to join them and took the name Maria Inocencia.
Franz Goebel owned a family company which produced porcelain items including figurines. He was looking for ideas to add children to the line. He saw some of Berta's paintings as post cards. He then negotiated a contract with her (now a nun) in 1934. The receipts that were to come to Maria Inocencia were designated for her group of nuns. The first figurines were sold in 1935.
When Hitler came to power, he allowed the Goebel company to continue production, but none were to be sold within Germany. He did not like the image of sweet children when he was creating disciplined youth corps. Around 1936 the figurines were for export only.
From what I have read, I believe the Sister figurine was first designed in 1938. It was manufactured in different sizes for over 60 years. I know that mine was manufactured after 1963 as it has the trademark for the period 1964-1972. Inside the statue is the Hummel number 98. After that is a slash with the number 2. Those numbers after the Hummel number indicate the various sizes. My Sister is about 4 1/2 inches high; one of the smaller renditions.
Hummels are still being manufactured. The numbers are at least in the 2000's now. I saw somewhere that the Sister was "retired" (the mold broken) in 1999. The most valuable figurines are the earliest ones, the larger ones, and those with multiple figures on the same base. There are lots of photos on ebay as people regularly try to sell them. I saw the Sister figurine on a base with Brother so there are not really 2000 unique children, but differing combinations.
American G.I. s brought Hummels to the United States as gifts. They became very popular in the 1960's and 1970's. They probably do not appeal to the current younger generations, but they do sell on ebay regularly but at much-reduced prices. The demand is not high now and the supply is plentiful.
Sister Maria Inocencia died of tuberculosis shortly after the war ended in 1946 (age 37). Her group of nuns suffered much because there was little revenue during the war and they had scant food and fuel. The sisters continued to supervise and approve the making of the figurines after her death and received payments.
We are expecting 2-4 inches of snow tonight into early tomorrow morning. I see the grass is already coated so it has begun. I bought some tulips to cheer me up and remind me that spring is only 4 weeks away.
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