Author Topic: Victorian theme - a few questions  (Read 5895 times)

Offline flatcat

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Victorian theme - a few questions
« on: August 18, 2010, 18:19:46 »
Hello :wave:

I am new to the Victorian theme, but a few things are making me confused :eh?:

(sorry about this) :-[


Firstly, I thought the Victorian theme was based on Victorian England (London) and if so, why is there a German policeman with a Pickelhaub:

5504 - Hobo And German Policeman

And then who is this one (still not British)

5508 - Hobo And Gendarme

I pressumed that the Victorian theme was wholy dedicated to Victorian Britain, like the western theme was wholey depicting America.


And also, why is this car always referred to as a 'Model T'?

5620 - Touring Car

Surely surely it is a Rolls Royce Silver Ghost (1907) which would tye in exactly to be late Victorian. Ford model T's couldn't possibly be over here in the 1900's :hmm:



Even the steering wheel is on the right side

And lastly (sorry) :-[ Who are these people, and why does their case say 'top secret' ???

5405 - General And Attache',Victorian


Damo :)

 

Offline Wolf Knight

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Re: Victorian theme - a few questions
« Reply #1 on: August 18, 2010, 18:49:02 »
All very good questions Damo! I was also wandering about the policeman sets, but I am sure that naval officers wore hats like the one in 5508!

As for the car, it does indeed look like a silver ghost (1906 - 1926) but the model t (who is refering to the particular playmobil car as model t btw?) was in production from 1908 to 1927! And especially the 1910 model (see attachment) looks like the playmobil one (Queen Victoria passed away in 1901...So I would not call these cars victorian...)!


As for the general and attache, I doubt these are accurate depictions of victorian officers...

Offline Tiermann

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Re: Victorian theme - a few questions
« Reply #2 on: August 18, 2010, 19:30:07 »
I don't believe that Playmobil intended the theme to be specifically England, but a more general Victorian era. Victorian as a term refers to the reign of Queen Victoria of England but the term is used in places such as the U.S. to refer to the era in general. It is also known by other terms - The Gilded Age is one used in the U.S. that refers to the same period generally.
The two versions of the Policeman were both released internationally. I don't know why they never released a version with a Bobby's hat.
I don't think the the General and his attache are intended to be specific characters. There was a set that was though - 3099 Professor Mobilux and Patrick they were characters in a series of audio dramatizations that were released by Playmobil.

Offline flatcat

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Re: Victorian theme - a few questions
« Reply #3 on: August 18, 2010, 19:44:07 »
I don't believe that Playmobil intended the theme to be specifically England, but a more general Victorian era. Victorian as a term refers to the reign of Queen Victoria of England but the term is used in places such as the U.S. to refer to the era in general. It is also known by other terms - The Gilded Age is one used in the U.S. that refers to the same period generally.
The two versions of the Policeman were both released internationally. I don't know why they never released a version with a Bobby's hat.
I don't think the the General and his attache are intended to be specific characters. There was a set that was though - 3099 Professor Mobilux and Patrick they were characters in a series of audio dramatizations that were released by Playmobil.


That is very interesting that the term 'Victorian' was used overseas to describe the same periods of time.

It has slightly spoilt it for me now, knowing that the theme isn't intirely true, depicting everything from Victorian London, but it is good enough I suppose considering that I know no other toy that does 0)

All very good questions Damo! I was also wandering about the policeman sets, but I am sure that naval officers wore hats like the one in 5508!

As for the car, it does indeed look like a silver ghost (1906 - 1926) but the model t (who is refering to the particular playmobil car as model t btw?) was in production from 1908 to 1927! And especially the 1910 model (see attachment) looks like the playmobil one (Queen Victoria passed away in 1901...So I would not call these cars victorian...)!


That model T you show does look very much like the Playmobil version, but so does the Rolls Royce, and it makes more sense to be. The Model T would (1908 - 1927) by the time that any made it to victorian Britain (if many at all) would most likely have missed the victorian period and into Edwardian.

But then what about the truck? it looks identical to the car, but to my knowledge there have been no Rolls Royce trucks that look like that, but then this model T one does:



Damo :)
 

Offline playmo1989

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Re: Victorian theme - a few questions
« Reply #4 on: August 18, 2010, 19:58:41 »
oh damo don't take things so seriously they are toys i don't think they made the 5405 to be spesific characters or the both sets with the beggar  the police men are representing a spesific suit someone desighned them they liked the figure and came to production as most klickys. the painter or the photographer don't made to look like someone just made for being sold as toys and the term "victorian" ,i know hear it people have named that series this way now , i guess the originall titlle of the theme was dollhouse  :)

 
have i helped a little??
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Offline flatcat

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Re: Victorian theme - a few questions
« Reply #5 on: August 18, 2010, 20:05:14 »
oh damo don't take things so seriously they are toys i don't think they made the 5405 to be spesific characters or the both sets with the beggar  the police men are representing a spesific suit someone desighned them they liked the figure and came to production as most klickys. the painter or the photographer don't made to look like someone just made for being sold as toys and the term "victorian" ,i know hear it people have named that series this way now , i guess the originall titlle of the theme was dollhouse  :)

 
have i helped a little??

You are slightly missing the point - when I am setting up a Victorian street scene or whatever, of dipicting traditional Victorian London, I don't want some German policeman in the middle of it, or some suspicious men probably from another country from the sounds of it, carrying round a case that says 'Top secret' on it :lol:

I know it is just a toy, and ok the vehicles can be whatever you want, but I am a very picky person - everything has to be right 8} ;D

Damo :)
 

Offline playmofire

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Re: Victorian theme - a few questions
« Reply #6 on: August 18, 2010, 20:05:49 »
Another name for the Victorian theme is La Belle Epoque which covered the period of the late 19th century to the outbreak of the First World War.  It is parallel with the Gilded Age in the USA Tim Tiermann refers to.  In Great Britain, it covers the latter part of the Victorian age and the Edwardian period.  The period was largely a tome of peace and industrial and commercial expansion, although the upper classes benefited much more in terms of wealth from these than the working classes.
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Offline playmo1989

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Re: Victorian theme - a few questions
« Reply #7 on: August 18, 2010, 20:12:33 »
You are slightly missing the point - when I am setting up a Victorian street scene or whatever, of dipicting traditional Victorian London, I don't want some German policeman in the middle of it, or some suspicious men probably from another country from the sounds of it, carrying round a case that says 'Top secret' on it :lol:

I know it is just a toy, and ok the vehicles can be whatever you want, but I am a very picky person - everything has to be right 8} ;D

Damo :),

 
oh well you can make customs ,personally i love the series anything that pops up on ebay   i don't leave it get away if it is in good price i have 9 5300 and 4 5305 .you know that you will have to spend a lot of money .............. for getting the whole series one time each set at least ...   :)
The spirits rule !!!!

Offline playmofire

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Re: Victorian theme - a few questions
« Reply #8 on: August 18, 2010, 20:39:54 »
Hello :wave:

I am new to the Victorian theme, but a few things are making me confused :eh?:

(sorry about this) :-[




And also, why is this car always referred to as a 'Model T'?

5620 - Touring Car

Surely surely it is a Rolls Royce Silver Ghost (1907) which would tye in exactly to be late Victorian. Ford model T's couldn't possibly be over here in the 1900's :hmm:



Even the steering wheel is on the right side

And lastly (sorry) :-[ Who are these people, and why does their case say 'top secret' ???

5405 - General And Attache',Victorian


Damo :)



The car is usually referred to as a limousine or a tourer and certainly resembles a R-R.  The "Victorian" lorry is usually described as a Model T, which it does resemble.  Playmobil has created generic vehicles here which resemble vehicles of the time in general.

As regards the position of the steering wheel, it was quite some time before Continental and US manufacturers settled on the steering wheel on the left and the UK (amongst others) on decided to have the steering wheel on the right.  Some manufacturers in a country might have a left hand layout while others might have the right hand layout and yet others might have the steering wheel centrally placed.  As late as the mid-1930s, some American vehicle manufacturers were producing vehicles with the steering wheel on the right while others had the steering wheel on the left, and the first type were not being produced for export.

As for the general and his attache, uniformed men in the street would be quite common in this period, although the TOP SECRET on the briefcase (or attache case) would be unusual!   (Maybe the other side of the case is blank so it could be carried that way.)  And suspicious foreigners were in the streets of London, Paris and Berlin at this time, often with briefcases which contained documents marked TOP SECRET.  On more than one occasion, Sherlock Holmes deals with foreign spies and the theft of secret documents.
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Offline flatcat

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Re: Victorian theme - a few questions
« Reply #9 on: August 18, 2010, 21:07:05 »
Thanks for the history lesson everyone! :D

I guess I will quit the groaning, and use my imagination, which I guess was intended in the first place - a universal series that could be any country in the late 1800's early 1900's.

For me, a typical Victorian London street

Still, no British policeman >:( ;D

Damo :)