Description: Extremely rare collector’s piece. For the toy soldier collector who has everything. Own a piece of history — from the original 1895 series of Britains Toy Soldiers. Four (4) pieces. All in very good condition, and appearing to have original paint. Springs are intact and in good working order. Two with missing helmet spikes, one with partial spike. Original box and original wire “bullets” not included. From “The Great Big Book of Britains” (1993): Set 25 Soldiers that will Shoot The Soldiers that will Shoot were an ingenious novelty in the Britains toy tradition, being kneeling Infantry of the Line in the same uniform as set 16, but with blue collar and cuffs, firing rifles that were enlarged and hollowed out to accommodate a thin piece of wire which could then protrude from a hole behind the shoulder. A piece of vertical spring steel is set in the base behind the figure, and by flicking this, the soldier is made to project the piece of wire through the rifle barrel. The box contained four of these figures and a number of pieces of the wire ammunition. Being intended to be played with, the soldiers are rare today, although as toy soldiers, the enlarged barrels of the guns and the pieces of spring steel make them rather ugly. The set was discontinued after 1916. As these were not included in the 1895 lead soldier advertisement, either they were not yet made, or they counted as a toy. Their introduction cannot have been long delayed, since box lids without numbers, i.e. pre- 1898, have been seen. There seems no reason to doubt that they were first made, at least in prototype, in this year, and introduced in the fairly lengthy queue of new lines that was building up to go into production. The box lid in later years was marked with the patent number 6192.1893, suggesting that this set was a mechanical toy that may have been involved in the original thinking behind the idea of going in for model soldiers in the first place. *** These come from the estate of a lifelong collector of Britains Toy Soldiers. Each piece will be carefully wrapped and boxed. Returns accepted. Follow me for more great auctions coming soon. Original box not included (box photos from GBBoB for illustration only).
Price: 549 USD
Location: Encinitas, California
End Time: 2024-09-29T17:33:50.000Z
Shipping Cost: 0 USD
Product Images
Item Specifics
Restocking Fee: No
Return shipping will be paid by: Buyer
All returns accepted: Returns Accepted
Item must be returned within: 30 Days
Refund will be given as: Money Back
Brand: Britains
Type: Soldier
