R is for return to Ra, Ramses, Wrapped Wraiths and the Republic of K&M

And this time Mummy is included!

When I posted these the other day I had been labouring under the impression I had been sent 'both' rival sets (by Peter Evans - many thanks) for what would have been a comprehensive showing, but as I was editing them up, I realised there was a third set, which I had missed and while I mentioned it in the blurb then, I thought I'd better get one to compare.

Midway between Safari's Toob and the header-carded bag of the current Wild Republic set we looked at a couple of months ago, this sliding blister with backing card contains ten items which are also halfway between the content lists of the aforementioned sets, with the obvious difference that this set contains two full-sized (to the sets figures) mummies, one a Pharaoh the other more ambiguous, and capable of being a child in larger scales.

All bar the Tut' death mask are clearly marked with the parents K&M like the astronauts, and quality of paint and sculpting is better than the current set and equal-to or even slightly superior to the Safari set. Note that the Isis / Maat figure's wings were glued-on upside down in the factory/finishing location.

Comparisons with their own replacements (lower left) and Safari's effort (upper right) reveal that the pyramids and sphinx might have influenced Safari (rather than the other way round as I might have assumed), certainly the K&M ones are slightly larger and better sculpted.

The internal comparison is more interesting for - as well as being unmarked - the newer set has a very slight loss of detail on things like the detailing of the surface of the sarcophagus, or the muzzles of the two standing gods, but parallels are there under 'the glass', so it would seem K&M pantographed their own set to make duplicates of the five items carried-over to the newer iteration?

Painting has also and obviously been simplified on the newer set. The wings being loose on the previously purchased newer set and upside-down on the newly-arrived older set, meant I could have them all off and studied before gluing them firmly back, correctly in place with plumbers PVC pipe-weald!

The older set has studs on the wings location into dimples in the back of the godesses arms, while a reversal has the newer girls wings drilled through to take studs from the backs of her arms.

As the older one has better paint and a dais to kneel on, she will - henceforth - be Isis, while the red-winged junior (?) Maat (or Ma'at) can supplicate on the floor before her!