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Rudolf Lausberg with a specimen from the pig collection made entirely of straw - it is one of the larger specimens
Photo: Henning Kaiser / picture alliance / dpa
Made of rubber and plastic, painted in oil or printed as bottle coasters.
On ties and glasses, as a doormat and snow globe.
Or made of porcelain, plush, clay, metal and even straw: In Rudolf Lausberg's cooperative apartment in Cologne-Vingst there is probably not a single square meter without a number of pigs romping about.
In and on showcases and cupboards, in drawers and under the bed, on the walls and in numerous boxes in the basement: Rudolf Lausberg estimates that the collection of his wife Hannelore, who died in 2020, comprises at least 4,000, but probably more than 5,000 copies. "We got married in 1963, and shortly after that my wife discovered a porcelain pig in a shop window on Schildergasse," says the 85-year-old. It cost 100 marks, "that was a lot of money for us back then, but because it reminded my wife of her childhood, we bought it."
The animal became the cornerstone of a decades-long passion for collecting.
How much money has the couple poured into the characters over the years?
Rudolf Lausberg shrugs his shoulders, he never followed through.
When an appraiser was there recently, she didn't want to commit herself: the collection could be worth 10,000 euros, but maybe several times that.
At least a benchmark for Lausberg, who would like to sell the pigs and donate the proceeds to the flood victims on the Ahr.
Special Collection "Chef's Hat Pigs"
So he first told the local newspapers and then the German Press Agency, that was in November, the SPIEGEL also reported.
Reporters and photographers then came, RTL was there with a camera team and turned it into an action in Cologne's pedestrian zone: pigs were sold to passers-by in exchange for a donation for the Ahr Valley.
1000 euros came together.
Lausberg collects the money, of course, in a piggy bank.
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A museum from the Münsterland reported shortly before Christmas that it was still under construction but was very interested in the collection.
"When they heard about the appraiser's estimate, they were surprised - they had thought of just 500 euros for everything," says Rudolf Lausberg.
The deal didn't go through.
A couple from Nuremberg, owners of a butcher's shop and already on the road in the Rhineland, roamed the apartment enthusiastically and bought several copies, including a telephone in the shape of a pig.
Pig collectors called from all over Germany, many with discernible expertise - they knew exactly what they were looking for.
For example, one woman, also from Cologne, "was only interested in chef's hat pigs," says Rudolf Lausberg.
Her collection includes 6,000 specimens, and she only took figures with her that showed the pig as a cook with the appropriate headgear.
"I didn't even know before that such a specialization existed," says Lausberg's son.
He still sounds a bit puzzled.
»My wife knew every single animal«
Visitors do not notice that a number of sows have already been released from the apartment, the rooms are still dominated by the animals.
In the former children's room, the shelves are sometimes even in the second row, because otherwise there would not be enough space for the figures.
"My wife knew every single animal in the collection," says Rudolf Lausberg, "she would have noticed immediately if one was missing somewhere."
Does he have a favorite copy himself?
The 85-year-old doesn't have to think twice: Miss Piggy from the Muppet Show as a plush toy is one thing - the other is a pig in leather gear, a Harley-Davidson advertising character.
For most of the pigs, Rudolf Lausberg still remembers on which vacation trip or for what occasion his wife bought them.
Nevertheless, it is now time to find a new home for the animals, he says.
The 85-year-old is certain: his wife would have liked the idea of donating to the flood victims.
That's why he continues to wait - for calls from pig collectors.