Whether they were meant to be human, humanoid or simply fairy tale creatures, it is impossible to mistake a smurf for any other toy.

Created in 1957 by European cartoonist "Peyo" – Perri Culliford, a Belgian – these little creatures with big noses, blue skin and loppy white hats, first appeared in a comic strip "Spirou." The name, smurf, derives from French vernacular for whatsit, and these whatsits were an immediate success.

The manufacture of 2-inch figurines quickly followed, and when Saturday morning smurf cartoons came to America about 1979, the "under-10" crowd loved them. Smurf figurines soon appeared in American stores, but today, demand for the two-inch PVC figurines has shifted from the younger crowd to any age, eight to 80, as collectibles.

Like any collectible, a smurf in mint condition commands the best prices, though there are exceptions. For instance, the tiny lettering on the base, which identifies figurines as to date and country of origin, makes a difference, and so does manufacture authorized by the original firm, Schleich. Although Smurf items – surefire seller for small entrepreneurs – have originated in 56 Countries, including Hong Kong, China, Portugal, Sri Lanka, "authentic" smurfs, on which both names (Schleich and Peyo) appear, are more highly valued than rogue copies. Smurf authority Suzanne Kuoscgutz says there are no American manufacturers.

Tiny variations inherent in hand painting and special designs, also make certain smurfs more valuable, and so does the great range of individual molds, which are run and then discarded.

For instance, the collection of Jill Melcher, Indiana, includes "smurfettes" (female smurfs), smurfs in costume (wizard, clown) and in occupation clothes (policeman, barber). Four little musicians grasp various instruments and 20 blue-skinned athletes range from matador to skateboarders to soccer players. Smurfs ride in tiny cars, planes and tractors and others clutch miscellaneous flowers, glasses, a popsicle, in tiny blue paws.

Melcher has a set of four 1981 pieces that show Papa Smurf teaching with a blackboard; another two-piece set is Gargamel and cat, dated 1978. These may have been manufactured in quantity, but as time passes, they have become harder and harder to find. Rarest of all are holiday designs – like the 1982 Smurf Christmas ornaments of Melcher's collection. These were produced in small quantities for Christmas and Easter, and Schleich also puts out a limited edition figurine annually, just for smurf club members.

Collections can include posters, wind-up toys, mugs, glasses, smurf party supplies, Pez candy dispensers, Smurf Christmas ornaments, puzzles, games, pillows, smurf dolls, smurf shoelaces for baby shoes and smurf habitats.

Smurfs have generated 25 storybooks, pins and items of porcelain, pewter, brass, and plush. In addition, comics, trading cards, lunch boxes, greeting cards, calendars, animation art cells and postcards, give collectors plenty of scope.

Especially in demand are those used for fast food promotions, "crossover collectibles," valued both by smurf collectors and collectors of fast-food give-a-ways.

In Europe, smurf advertising has promoted Omo laundry detergent, Fanta soft drinks, German banks and body-building clubs, and these European promos have become a collecting specialty.

But because they are neither as old or as widely recognized as say – old tractors or cast iron banks – smurfs provide a kind of collecting that can be highly affordable, sometimes geared even to the pocket money of kids. Purchased for a dollar or two at a yard sale or flea market, a special smurf may bring many more times that amount in a gathering of collectors, and this non-specific value, dependent as it is upon a certain gleam in the eye of a collector, adds the delicious possibility of doubling one's money.

Because polychloride construction is sturdy and unbreakable, even older smurfs are usually found in good condition, with wear usually confined to the paint job. However, even smurfs bearing hard evidence of having delighted the play of a child, may still be salable, depending on the model and what a collector is looking for.

Collector Suzanne Lipschitz, New York, became involved with smurfs when her son tired of playing with smurfs and wished his collection upon her. Lipschitz, who now owns more than 3,000 smurfs and related items, in 1986 organized The Smurf Collector's Club International.

The club now has some 1200 members, about 1,000 of them in the U.S., the others in Canada, England, Germany, Italy and Israel. American members sometimes arrange to import smurf items found only in Europe. Lipschitz also puts out a quarterly newsletter, a copy of which can be obtained by writing to the Smurf Collectors' Club International, c/o Mrs. Suzanne Lipschitz, 24 Cabot Road West, Massapequa, NY 11758.