Ilkley Toy Museum
Encyclopedia
Ilkley Toy Museum in Ilkley
, West Yorkshire
, houses a private collection of toys dating from 350 BCE
to modern times, and is open to the public, schools and groups. It opens at weekends: see the website for weekday opening times, appointments and admission charges.Information leaflet (available at Museum).
working model fairground
automaton
, which goes into action when one purchases a token and puts it in the slot placed under the window. See it working here.
There is also a Hornby
clockwork
train lift.
In this gallery is a large display of furnished dolls' houses
, mainly Victorian, and mainly from Germany
and England
. They include Stafford House (1830)
(see image),
possibly named after Lancaster House
, which was then a topical subject, being still in the process of building. There is an unusual dolls' house of Georgian
appearance, with great, twisted pillars at the front, and Georgian
furnishings and figures.
Some of these dolls' houses are miniature shop displays, with minuscule and delicate objects on counters and shelves. There is thin glassware; there are miniature dolls; there is a tiny shopkeeper with little steel needles, holding real knitting
. Tiny modern pieces of delicate crochet
or tatting
hang in some of these little shops as cloths and bags. The display includes a pet shop
(see image)
and butcher's shop
(see image).
(see image)
and lead
figures
; games; wooden and paper toys in drawers.
Some are Victorian, and some date from the 1950s. There are boys' dolls made to look like Bond
villains, toy soldier
s and 1960s toy cars
(see image).
In a central glass case is an Elastolin
Wild West display,
in which a wagon
and horses careers along under its furious driver, while the passenger leans far out with his gun. Muscular Native Americans
in full headdress gallop swiftly around on their pintos. There is much movement in this little display. The original models for these casts were made with skill, and with an eye for drama which is difficult to capture in a
photograph.
Among other items against the window wall is the flat-metal flotilla
of Victorian or earlier warships and boats, set at adult eye-level on a glass shelf. The metal appears to glitter, and the tiny display gives a hint of what it must have been like to view a great fleet in the old days.
articulated Etruscan
ceramic
doll
(see image). There is a display of early English wooden dolls, including Miss Barwick,
dated ca.1750-1760. She was owned by the Barwick family of West Yeadon
, and has a sedan chair
with brocade
furnishings embossed with a "B". Her face is sculpted with gesso
on wood, her eyes are enamelled
and her wig is made of real hair
(see image).
There is Blanche, the Steiff 1910 teddy bear, with her wartime
history. She featured in the TV series Trainer
, and appears in The Century of the Teddy Bear by Constance King
(see image).
There is also a Farnell teddy bear of 1920 - a type perhaps more common in England before World War II
. The Farnell bears had a hump at the back of the neck, and a lead-weighted tilt growler sewn into the back of the body. As you tipped your bear forward, it emitted a deep growling sound.
Ilkley
Ilkley is a spa town and civil parish in West Yorkshire, in the north of England. Ilkley civil parish includes the adjacent village of Ben Rhydding and is a ward within the metropolitan borough of Bradford. Approximately north of Bradford, the town lies mainly on the south bank of the River Wharfe...
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, houses a private collection of toys dating from 350 BCE
Common Era
Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...
to modern times, and is open to the public, schools and groups. It opens at weekends: see the website for weekday opening times, appointments and admission charges.Information leaflet (available at Museum).
Ground floor dolls' houses gallery
At the back is a 1940s EnglishEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
working model fairground
Funfair
A funfair or simply "fair" is a small to medium sized travelling show primarily composed of stalls and other amusements. Larger fairs such as the permanent fairs of cities and seaside resorts might be called a fairground, although technically this should refer to the land where a fair is...
automaton
Automaton
An automaton is a self-operating machine. The word is sometimes used to describe a robot, more specifically an autonomous robot. An alternative spelling, now obsolete, is automation.-Etymology:...
, which goes into action when one purchases a token and puts it in the slot placed under the window. See it working here.
There is also a Hornby
Hornby Railways
Hornby Railways is the leading brand of model railway in the United Kingdom. Its roots date back to 1901, when founder Frank Hornby received a patent for his Meccano construction toy. The first clockwork train was produced in 1920. In 1938, Hornby launched its first 00 gauge train...
clockwork
Clockwork
A clockwork is the inner workings of either a mechanical clock or a device that operates in a similar fashion. Specifically, the term refers to a mechanical device utilizing a complex series of gears....
train lift.
In this gallery is a large display of furnished dolls' houses
Dollhouse
A dollhouse is a toy home, made in miniature. For the last century, dollhouses have primarily been the domain of children but their collection and crafting is also a hobby for many adults. The term dollhouse is common in the United States and Canada...
, mainly Victorian, and mainly from Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. They include Stafford House (1830)
(see image),
possibly named after Lancaster House
Lancaster House
Lancaster House is a mansion in the St. James's district in the West End of London. It is close to St. James's Palace and much of the site was once part of the palace complex...
, which was then a topical subject, being still in the process of building. There is an unusual dolls' house of Georgian
Georgian era
The Georgian era is a period of British history which takes its name from, and is normally defined as spanning the reigns of, the first four Hanoverian kings of Great Britain : George I, George II, George III and George IV...
appearance, with great, twisted pillars at the front, and Georgian
Georgian era
The Georgian era is a period of British history which takes its name from, and is normally defined as spanning the reigns of, the first four Hanoverian kings of Great Britain : George I, George II, George III and George IV...
furnishings and figures.
Some of these dolls' houses are miniature shop displays, with minuscule and delicate objects on counters and shelves. There is thin glassware; there are miniature dolls; there is a tiny shopkeeper with little steel needles, holding real knitting
Knitting
Knitting is a method by which thread or yarn may be turned into cloth or other fine crafts. Knitted fabric consists of consecutive rows of loops, called stitches. As each row progresses, a new loop is pulled through an existing loop. The active stitches are held on a needle until another loop can...
. Tiny modern pieces of delicate crochet
Crochet
Crochet is a process of creating fabric from yarn, thread, or other material strands using a crochet hook. The word is derived from the French word "crochet", meaning hook. Hooks can be made of materials such as metals, woods or plastic and are commercially manufactured as well as produced by...
or tatting
Tatting
Tatting is a technique for handcrafting a particularly durable lace constructed by a series of knots and loops. Tatting can be used to make lace edging as well as doilies, collars, and other decorative pieces. The lace is formed by a pattern of rings and chains formed from a series of cow hitch,...
hang in some of these little shops as cloths and bags. The display includes a pet shop
(see image)
and butcher's shop
(see image).
First floor toys gallery
Here are tin plate toys(see image)
and lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
figures
Toy soldier
A toy soldier is a miniature figurine that represents a soldier. The term applies to depictions of uniformed military personnel from all eras, and includes knights, cowboys, pirates, and other subjects that involve combat-related themes. Toy soldiers vary from simple playthings to highly realistic...
; games; wooden and paper toys in drawers.
Some are Victorian, and some date from the 1950s. There are boys' dolls made to look like Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
villains, toy soldier
Toy soldier
A toy soldier is a miniature figurine that represents a soldier. The term applies to depictions of uniformed military personnel from all eras, and includes knights, cowboys, pirates, and other subjects that involve combat-related themes. Toy soldiers vary from simple playthings to highly realistic...
s and 1960s toy cars
Model car
A model car or toy car is a miniature representation of an automobile. Other miniature motor vehicles, such as trucks, buses, or even ATVs, etc. are often included in the general category of model cars...
(see image).
In a central glass case is an Elastolin
Elastolin
Elastolin is a trademark used by the German company O&M Hausser for the toy soldiers and other types of figures it manufactured from composite material and later from plastic....
Wild West display,
in which a wagon
Wagon
A wagon is a heavy four-wheeled vehicle pulled by draught animals; it was formerly often called a wain, and if low and sideless may be called a dray, trolley or float....
and horses careers along under its furious driver, while the passenger leans far out with his gun. Muscular Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
in full headdress gallop swiftly around on their pintos. There is much movement in this little display. The original models for these casts were made with skill, and with an eye for drama which is difficult to capture in a
photograph.
Among other items against the window wall is the flat-metal flotilla
Flotilla
A flotilla , or naval flotilla, is a formation of small warships that may be part of a larger fleet. A flotilla is usually composed of a homogeneous group of the same class of warship, such as frigates, destroyers, torpedo boats, submarines, gunboats, or minesweepers...
of Victorian or earlier warships and boats, set at adult eye-level on a glass shelf. The metal appears to glitter, and the tiny display gives a hint of what it must have been like to view a great fleet in the old days.
First floor dolls gallery
The oldest exhibit is the 350 BCECommon Era
Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...
articulated Etruscan
Etruscan civilization
Etruscan civilization is the modern English name given to a civilization of ancient Italy in the area corresponding roughly to Tuscany. The ancient Romans called its creators the Tusci or Etrusci...
ceramic
Ceramic
A ceramic is an inorganic, nonmetallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...
doll
(see image). There is a display of early English wooden dolls, including Miss Barwick,
dated ca.1750-1760. She was owned by the Barwick family of West Yeadon
Yeadon, West Yorkshire
Yeadon is a town within the City of Leeds metropolitan borough, in West Yorkshire, England. It is home to Leeds Bradford International Airport.-History:...
, and has a sedan chair
Litter (vehicle)
The litter is a class of wheelless vehicles, a type of human-powered transport, for the transport of persons. Examples of litter vehicles include lectica , jiao [较] , sedan chairs , palanquin , Woh , gama...
with brocade
Brocade
Brocade is a class of richly decorative shuttle-woven fabrics, often made in colored silks and with or without gold and silver threads. The name, related to the same root as the word "broccoli," comes from Italian broccato meaning "embossed cloth," originally past participle of the verb broccare...
furnishings embossed with a "B". Her face is sculpted with gesso
Gesso
Gesso is a white paint mixture consisting of a binder mixed with chalk, gypsum, pigment, or any combination of these...
on wood, her eyes are enamelled
Enamel paint
Enamel paint is paint that air dries to a hard, usually glossy, finish, used for coating surfaces that are outdoors or otherwise subject to hard wear or variations in temperature; it should not be confused with decorated objects in "painted enamel", where vitreous enamel is applied with brushes and...
and her wig is made of real hair
(see image).
There is Blanche, the Steiff 1910 teddy bear, with her wartime
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
history. She featured in the TV series Trainer
Trainer (TV series)
Trainer is a British television series transmitted by the BBC between 1991 and 1992.Filmed in and around the village of Compton near Newbury, the series is set in the world of horse racing. It starred Mark Greenstreet as Mike Hardy, an aspiring horse trainer keen to set up his own stables...
, and appears in The Century of the Teddy Bear by Constance King
(see image).
There is also a Farnell teddy bear of 1920 - a type perhaps more common in England before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The Farnell bears had a hump at the back of the neck, and a lead-weighted tilt growler sewn into the back of the body. As you tipped your bear forward, it emitted a deep growling sound.
Ilkley Toy Museum Quiz
The child entrance fee includes a quiz and prize. If children would like to answer some questions on paper (with adult help if appropriate) about the exhibits, then they receive a small prize on leaving.External links
- Ilkley Toy Museum website
- www.visitbradford.com: directions to Ilkley Toy Museum by road.
- Image of policeman teddy by Museum door.
- Yell.com: send-to-mobile facility for directions to the Museum.
- YouTube: walking toy elephant at Ilkley Toy Museum video)
- Youtube: working fairground at Ilkley Toy Museum video)