Hi everyone,
Can someone tell me which year that this Schöller promo smurf was issued? and was it for a pecial occasion?
Thanks for your help!
Baboune
I can help you with that!
If you check the markings on this smurf with the hole in the hand, it does not have the yearmarking. The year added later is also 1978. But Schleich added this first 1980 in their catalogue. I have all the catalogues in very high resolution on DVD( thanks Stefan) I can make very nice closeups on the smurfs.
Therefore I also can give you picture proof for this!!
The first picture of the ice lollysmurf has a hole in the hand. And as you all understand there would have been no point in having a hole in the hand if not any accessorie should have been in that hole.
I am 100% sure the first variation of the icelollysmurf was the Schöllersmurf in Germany in 1979. It was not made before 1978, because then the mold would have had the emblem. So 1979 is a very good and accurate year for the Schöllersmurf!!
The reason for the promos are, if I would guess, this: Bully had the rights for the smurfs in germany before 1980. But it seems Schleich could sell figurines as promos many times. Peyo also wanted Schleich to get the license back already in 1978 so he would not have disagreed if it was legally possible with the Bully license. Many of the smurfs made these years seems to have been used as promos, not only for National and BP, but also ASS and Schöller for example.
this mold was changed in 1980 and the hole was "removed" but Schleich still sold the ones made with the hole for a while after this. In the 1980 catalogue the hole is gone on the icelollysmurf.
As with the nationalemblem cleaner they took the variations they had for the pictures when they did not have the new variation yet. So for the cleaner they used the nationalemblem one when the picture was taken for the catalogue. Same with the icelolly but in this case it was very easy just to remove the flag before taking the picture.
Maureen 
Staci 
