Most 'large-scale' collectors, or at least
the more generic or ephemeral collectors, the completist or competitive
collectors or the curious (which is all bar the subject-specific collectors,
i.e. most of them) would happily have a bright red Tudor Rose Land-Rover or bright yellow Pyro or Banner 'dimestore'
Jeep in their collections, yet no one wanted these?
Yet, I also half-understand, as despite
sliding the first image between the two introductory paragraphs, and sticking
another above this continuation of my opening point, I am going to struggle to
find enough blurb for the post, as there's hardly anything to say about them,
but having taken a load of images when I first saw them and some more of my
example (red one) I now have five collages to write up! Now obviously, the next
paragraph can be all about the Box . . .
Which comes in at least two colour-ways,
both are three-colour processes, but different colours, litho'd, not
dot-matrix, so green/orange are reproduced by overlaying. Each box also has two
panels and one end with the the written details in Afrikans and the other three
faces in English . . . like the contemporaneous stamps!
This leaves maker and the vehicle to
describe; but you've already seen it as I spread the images through the text!
It's an amphibious Jeep in leery colours, reasonably accurate for an infant
toy, and in a phenolic resin which is starting to distort - in the case of the
yellow; particularly so. Opposite colours are placed as 'small parts'; red on
the yellow vehicle and vise-versa.
Final image leaves us with the maker . . . African Plastic Industries (Pty) Limited
trading as Apion and the price . . .
three shillings and ninep'nce, for something this large, which has probably
been sent half-way round the world on a tramp steamer, places them in the
nineteen-fifties I suspect, while there's nothing on Google!
Phew! Got there, can't understand why no
one wanted them, can half-understand why they generated so little interest, but
. . . humans are weird! Still they join the Haarlem and SA marked SAE in the collection, what next from
that part of the world?
3 comments:
Good day, I read your post and, indeed, it is very interesting. I stay in "that part of the world" as you ended your blog. This is also an interesting story... but we rather stay with the toys.
I am busy putting all our SA toys to book as far as possible. You are correct. It is hard to get any info about our toys. One thing I noticed is the following:
We recognized Afrikaans as one of our official languages in 1961. Before that, it was all in English. So, my first impression would be that the toy was manufactured in the early 60's. But, we also changed our currency to Rand in 1961, away from the English system. This brings the question exactly when was this model made. I would argue that it must have been very early in 60's and then probably 1961 with all the confusion of changeovers. The only reasoning that would change my mind is if we can find something with Afrikaans and English and we can establish it was before 1961.
If you would, I would like to buy one yellow box, or trade it for another green box. I don't have the yellow in my collection.
Anyway, we had many quality toys made in the '50s going to the 60's. You can certainly find PMI Massey Harris on Google.
Machiel Odendaal (South Africa)
Hi Machiel
Thanks for that, very useful and trenchant information. You need to speak to this lady (quickly - she only has six left, but seems to still have all three colours)
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/WW2-DUK-Amphibious-Jeep-Plastic-Toy-in-Original-Box-made-by-AFRICAN-PLASTICS/174242606995?hash=item2891ab2f93:g:dVYAAOSw4tJei1hf
I think she was the source of mine. I have dealt with her before and she will sell via PayPal from her non-eBay shop, and is good on colors/box types etc, if you ask. I only have the one, the others were shot at the Sandown Park toy fair, and I have actually ended up with a box and jeep which don't match, but are both good, some jeeps are quite warped, some boxed are tatty, but she will help, she's helped me with animal flats and things in the past.
Let us know when the book's ready, I'll definitely want one!
Hugh
Sorry Machiel -
You need to go through her shop
https://theswagmansdaughter.com/
That'll allow you to discuss off-eBay!
H
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