T is for Two-Dimensional Terrasaurs!

I think we've looked at these before and I explained my lack of a decent sample, but I've picked-up a few interesting bits on them, or related to them, in the last few years, so time for a better overview despite the lack of samples! Nabisco's Dinosaur Flats.

 

Except they aren't Nabisco, and there are only twelve of the 20, and I don't think they are even the Aussie issue, in fact, I think they are quite recent manufacture, (possibly from older tools), and came in this red and a mid-blue (below), and in the slightly chalky polyethylene of some really cheap rack-toy 'Army Men'.

As we can see from this comparison they are slightly smaller copies of the original set, but are otherwise quite good, sculpturally, with minimal loss of etched detailing, and no more than a millimetre smaller, overall, with thicker bases.

 

Most notable is the loss of depth to the mouldings, making them even flatter flats! The UK issue came in various shades from almost pure white to an 'ivorene' shade of clotted-cream!

 

Wagner in Germany also carried these - possibly first? And I'm pretty sure some of the base-names were Germanised, so they are something to look out for, but those with the same spelling can't be told apart, unless they have a Wagner sticker, which you don't usually get on the cavity-based issues.

 

Another comparison shot.

 

I am slowly picking up the set, but at my current rate I'll need at least another 30-years! The red polyethylene one on the right, is a modern copy, possibly from the same source as the animals I got from The Swagman's Daughter (and which were used as window-missile prizes, on feast-days in Malta), a few years ago, of a second, nicer set of Euro-flat premiums, where each animal comes with a little bit of prehistoric landscaping! Here, it's probably from a Christmas cracker?

From Cluck 1, and I can't find Cluck 2 right now, which had a better image of one of the kids-comic advertisements for the series, but, it's a checklist, and Cereal Offers have the whole set and more here;

http://cerealoffers.com/Cereal_Partners/Shreddies/1950s/1/1.html

Those data rings from the end-of-promotion mail-away, are very hard to find!