Breyer Animal Creations

Breyer Animal Creations was founded in 1950 in Chicago, Illinois, as Breyer Molding Company. It gained recognition when commissioned by F.W. Woolworth to create a horse statue (now known as the # 57 Western Horse) to adorn a mantel clock. It was approximately 1:9 scale and the model was retained as payment for molding the parts. Orders began to roll in for the horse only and the Breyer Animal Creations company was founded. Since then, Breyer has become a leader in producing model horses.

In 1984, Reeves International acquired Breyer Animal Creations and spent the next 20 years completing its transformation from toy distribution to manufacturing. Model horses are sold through independent distributors and the Breyer website.

While Breyer products were originally manufactured in the United States, production now takes place in China.

Production processes

Each horse is cast in a two to three piece mold. Both halves are then put together and the seams are sanded and polished. Markings and color patterns are usually obtained by using a stencil known as a mask, although most older models were airbrushed by hand, with markings such as undefined socks or a piebald face merely left unpainted. Most detailing, such as eye-whites (common on 1950s and 1960s models and now enjoying a resurgence in modern models), brands, or other individual markings are painstakingly hand-painted. Sometimes, a variation in the paint job occurs. Variation refers to a difference, usually in the paint job of a small number of a certain model, from how they were produced in the factory. The reason for variations is rarely known. For example, there is a common mold, typically called the Proud Arabian Stallion (abbreviated PAS by collectors), that for many years was produced by Breyer with a dappled gray coat and a gray mane, tail and hooves. However, for some unknown reason, a few of these models came from the factory with black manes, tails, and hooves, and black socks or stockings. These rare models are considered variations of the Dapple Grey PAS, and are very valuable compared to the regular model, which is quite common. They were later determined to be their own unique color model, and not a variation of the original PAS.

Collector value of products

One of the rare models are the few Breyer releases that are one-of-a-kind (OOAK), which are always given out as prizes or sold off at auction for charity at the yearly Breyerfest gatherings.

World Equestrian Games

In 2010, Breyer produced special models for the FEI World Equestrian Games. This was the first time WEG was held outside of Europe in Lexington, KY. Breyer created the 2010 Games Stablemates Assortment that came with eight miniature horses representing the eight disciplines seen at the games: jumping, eventing, dressage, reining, endurance, driving, vaulting, and para-dressage. In addition, a large Traditional size model, Esprit was sculpted by Kathleen Moody and released specifically for WEG.