Kösen orangutan

The orang-utang’s habitats are the rain-forests of Sumatra and Borneo: hence his name (in Malay) ‘wood-man’. He lives alone, is peaceful and friendly and is said to have a phlegmatic, even lazy disposition. He’s able to speak, for example (according to the local inhabitants!), but prefers not to do so in public, in order to avoid having to work. He doesn’t like being disturbed by poachers or wood-cutters. He likes to eat leaves: once he’s inspected a particular tree for leaf quality, he makes himself a nice nest of twigs and foliage and stays there until the food supply runs out.

Genuine stuffed animals made in Bad Kösen are collector’s items, but what they are actually made for is life in a nursery. Up to 100 parts are necessary to make a Kösen animal with securely fastened safety eyes and stuffing of non-flammable silicone hollow fibre (in case of the teddy bears and the larger specimen, they also add some plastic granulate for anatomic accuracy). Unlike many other manufacturers, who mostly use materials made in Asia, they stick to plush that comes from weaving mills in Germany, Belgium and France. It has a firmer quality and can thus be sewn more tightly – ultimately the reason for the animals’ durability. Besides, this plush fabric is resistant to hair loss. The Kösen animals are among the finest you can find, not only in craft but also in design. For every model, thorough studies of anatomy and movement are conducted in the animals’ natural environment or at the zoo; blueprints and clay models follow. Thanks to the co-operation with the neighbouring Burg Giebichenstein, a well-known training centre for product design in Germany since the beginning of the 20th century, the Kösen stuffed animals have won several design prizes.