Toys - Victorian Period (19th century)
Posted by Gillian Jones on 25/11/2014
As you can imagine and as we've seen in previous blogs, the 19th century brought with it sweeping changes, most of them due to the industrial revolution. This brought more sophisticated manufacturing techniques. The railways meant that goods and services were delivered quicker than in the past and sophisticated factories created goods that were perhaps less imaginative than those made by hand, but it also meant that a far wider audience could indulge in modern technology.
This included toys, and factory made ones included toys made of a variety of different and more robust materials, such as tin and wood. Train sets, clockwork operated toys, rocking horses, dolls houses and tea sets were available for those that could afford it. Again, as before, poorer families made do with toys made of cheaper materials, such as paper, metal or wood. It's likely that they also spent a lot of their time playing with homemade toys. Clothes peg dolls and toy boats made from a piece of wood were imaginative ways of creating toys out of materials that were close to hand. Rope could be used as a skipping rope, or a ball could be made out of some old sack stuffed with straw.
On www.antiques.co.uk, there's a variety of different toys from different periods that would be an excellent addition to any collection, so do take a look around and see if anything fits with what you're looking for. There are rocking horses and dogs on wheels, to cuddly toys and a late 19th century stable-block.
Make sure that you check the condition and what materials they're made from, especially if children of your own are going to be touching or feeling them. Not all toys made from the early centuries were aware of the some of the toxic materials used to make toys, and not all of them may be suitable for children today. Also keep in mind that if they are damaged at all, in any way, then this could affect their value.
Next week we'll take a look at toys from the 20th century.