3000 pieces of tin toys gathered at the Shanghai Metal Toy Museum

The 10,000-ton hydraulic press is the treasure of the town hall in the museum. It is made according to the physical tons of hydraulic press. After the battery is installed, it can be simulated. It is reported that every kindergarten in Shanghai had an electric iron 10,000 tons hydraulic press as a teaching tool.

The bear at the entrance of the museum holds the camera. The bear is a wooden sculpture scaled up according to the metal toy “Little Bear Photograph” which was popular among children in the 1970s.

A variety of metal cars, how much happiness and dreams for the children at that time, Yang Jianzheng

Born in the 70s and 80s of the last century, children have a tin frog in their memory. As long as the spring is tightened, the iron frog can sway on the floor for a while. Tin toy has become a brand of the times. Recently, the Shanghai Metal Toy Museum, which is located in the 1315 Park of Liangcheng Road, was officially opened. 3,000 pieces of metal toys from different ages were unveiled to bring back childhood memories and open a “time trip”.

Toy treasures gather

The 1000-square-meter exhibition hall of the Shanghai Metal Toy Museum is divided into three major areas: theme exhibition, toy interaction and metal toy family. The theme exhibition area consists of a row of train-shaped showcases. In the showcase, all kinds of exquisitely crafted and well-preserved tin toys are classified according to metal static, metal electric and metal springs. The production years are mainly from the 60s to the 80s. Iron frogs, hens laying eggs, chickens eating rice, bear pictures, and other childhood babies that have disappeared for many years can be traced here. In the toy interactive area, visitors can relive the joy of childhood with hens laying eggs, trains and other tin toys.

The reporter learned that at present, the museum has collected more than 3,000 pieces of metal toys including animals, vehicles, dolls and so on. In addition to some small toys that can evoke childhood memories, there are also some “treasures” with collectible value in the exhibits. These “treasures” are mainly concentrated in the theme exhibition area. A "mobile dragon" produced in 1978 has aroused the interest of many visitors. According to the museum's commentator, this “mobile dragon” with its painted body is magnetically controlled. Under the guidance of the magnetic control rod, the dragon body will dance freely along the track. The craft is fine and complicated. It is rare in the context of the times. For this reason, it won the second prize of the Shanghai Handicraft Competition. "Because of limited production, this "mobile dragon" has now become an orphan, the only one in the world." Introducer.

Committed to cultural heritage

The Shanghai Metal Toy Museum is built by Shanghai Toys Import & Export Co., Ltd., which has decades of experience in toy production. The person in charge of the company told the reporter that China is the world's largest toy exporter. Shanghai is the birthplace of China's modern toy industry, and the tin toy is the masterpiece of Shanghai toys.

Yang Xianmin, 67, was an old employee of Shanghai Kangyuan Toys Factory . He said that as the first factory in Shanghai to produce clockwork metal toys, 70%-80% of the tin toys that the museum can currently see are produced in Shanghai Kangyuan Toys Factory. "Like this four-shot submachine gun, it is a very popular toy in the 1960s." Yang Xianmin recalled the craftsmanship at that time. "From the opening of the mold to the final product, it takes almost three or four months, and the size of the mold is more than 100." Vice, the material is Tinplate, and the final color is, step by step, very well studied."

The complicated craftsmanship and exquisite workmanship are the evaluations of Shanghai Tin Toys by every "old toy company person". For this reason, the old toy people of the Toys Import and Export Corporation came up with the idea of ​​building a metal toy museum. “The tin toy is a brand of the times and a representative of the toy culture. It is worthy of our record and inheritance.”

According to reports, more than 3,000 pieces of tin toys exhibited at the museum are all sought after by repurchase. Since the toys produced in Shanghai were mainly exported, 80% of these toys were from abroad, 15% were repurchased in China, and 5% were the inheritance of the company itself. Among them, the support of the old designers is crucial. "Mobile Dragon" was provided by its designer Mr. Zheng Changyi. "Because I have never found a suitable venue, this work has been kept at home by the designer." I heard that the metal toy museum was to be built, and the old gentleman took it out immediately. The museum official said.

Accepting donations from citizens

It is reported that the future toy museum will continue to expand and is no longer limited to metal toys. "Now there are still a lot of toys in our warehouse that have not been exhibited, just for the museum to mature and then expand."

However, although the collection of tin toys currently accounts for more than 90% of all types, some parts are not recovered according to the catalogue. “Welcome people who have tin toys in their homes to donate to us. After the collection is on display, we will mark the name of the donor and name it.”

Correspondent Sun Jiejing reporter Yuan Wei