I was very taken with the wooden toy model ships that were on display at the Dutch National Maritime Museum (Het Scheepvaartmusum) and decided that more detailed photographs of them were worth sharing with my regular blog readers. The quality of some of the photos is not that wonderful, but I still think that they convey how good these wooden toy model ships are.
Road and Rail Ferry
The ferry has embedded railway tracks so that it can carry trains as well as road vehicles.
Motor Boat, Tug, Barges, and Docks
I loved the very typical Dutch-style double-beam drawbridge.
Cargo Ship, Barges, and Docks
Coaster, Warehouse, and Docks
Floating Crane
The cotton reel winch drums are both very simple and very effective.
Tug
Cargo Ship
As I wrote in my blog post about my recent visit to the Het Scheepvaartmusum in Amsterdam, these wooden toy ships were featured in an exhibition entitled Bruynzeel Havenspeelgoed.
The museum's website explained that Bruynzeel was a company based in Zaan (which is just north of Amsterdam) and that it was one of the largest manufacturers of doors, kitchens, cupboards, wooden flooring, and pencils in Europe in the 1930s, and that during the early part of World War II they supplied the German Army with doors for their barracks. At the same time, they employed workers who would otherwise have been redundant and therefore liable for forced labour duties in German with work producing these toy model ships.
The models were all made by hand using whatever surplus materials were available (e.g. offcuts of wood, bits of wooden dowel, wire, cotton reels). The shape of some of the masts would seem to indicate that a number of old dip-pen handles or artist' paintbrush handles may have been used to make them, and a lot of the detail on the models (e.g. the lattice framework on the crane jibs) was achieved using simple paint techniques.
The company is still extant today and still manufactures a wide range of wooden and other products.
These wooden model ships put me in mind of the models featured on the GRID BASED WARGAMING - BUT NOT ALWAYS blog, and especially the models used in the re-fight of the attack on St Nazaire ...
... and the simple but very effective-looking landing craft he built for his D-Day landings wargame.
Superb toys: a war gamer's dream! the potentials are enormous!
ReplyDeleteCheers,
Ion
Archduke Piccolo (Ion),
DeleteI totally agree! If only the company still made them!
All the best,
Bob
Both the Dutch and Peter's models are very nice Bob. Thanks for sharing these pictures from your recent trip.
ReplyDeleteMaudlin Jack Tar,
DeleteThey are very nice models, and I think that most modellers could emulate their design and construction.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob,
ReplyDeleteSimple, toy style ship models? It’ll never catch on…. :-)
They are rather lovely looking.
All the best,
DC
David Crook,
DeleteI suspect that your ironclad models would have gone down very well with the makers of these Dutch model ships because they are so similar in style and design,
All the best,
Bob
Nice models - just the right amount of detail to be practical.
ReplyDeleteRob Young,
DeleteYou are absolutely right. Enough detail to make them easy to identify, robust enough to withstand normal handling during a wargame, and plentry of deck space for any figures you might want to place on them.
All the best,
Bob
Delightful model/toy ships and settings. Stirs the imagination.
ReplyDeleteRoss Mac,
DeleteAs you comment, they are absolutely delightful … and their backstory (i.e. employing men who would otherwise have been taken as forced labourers to German) is truly amazing.
All the best,
Bob
Those are lovely and look great against the light blue sea, which really makes them pop. Amazing what you can achieve with a bit of tromp l'oeil☺️!
ReplyDeleteSteve J.,
DeleteI totally agree. I think that the paint effects are both simple and very effective.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob, The Dutch models have such a clean and beautify look to them. Also, thanks for the shout. Cheers, Peter
ReplyDeletePeter,
DeleteThey are wonderful models … and as soon as I saw them, I was reminded of your models, hence the mention and link to your excellent blog.
All the best,
Bob
BOB,
ReplyDeleteThe German ship and boat Toys are just delightful - extremely well made and most appealing. I use to make Toy Tug Boats and Cargo Vessels with my Woodwork Students- the Students liked the Toys a lot. Cheers. KEV.
Kev Robertson (Kev),
DeleteThe models are extremely well designed and made, and the fact that they have survived until now is a testament to the skills of the people who made them.
I seem to remember making a toy boat in my woodwork classes in the 1960s but it was nothing like as good as these are!
All the best,
Bob
I can't see a disply like that in a museum without mentally working out what scale figures and what size of forces I would need for a game and pondering over a suitable scenario.
ReplyDeleteLooks ideal for a WW2 commando type raid! Difficult to tell on scale, but maybe 15mm!
Fred,
DeleteSeeing the models set up as a dock/harbour, I immediately thought of using similar models for something like the Zeebrugge Raid or the attack on St Nazaire.
The ferry had rails inset into its deck. I assume that the gauge was HO which would make the models approximately 1:87th-scale.
All the best,
Bob