An unusual find at the Toy Soldier Show last weekend were these three figures from the "Medieval Knights Battle" series made in Germany by Babette Schweizer, the oldest manufacturer of zinnfiguren still in existence.
I was drawn to the group because they are unusually large for flats, measuring 95mm from the base to top of the helmet. I also liked the shape of the horse' head and neck together with the accurate portrayal of long spurs which gives them the look of illustrations from a medieval woodcut.
The style of armour appears to be 15th Century and they have retained their original paint, happily sword and lance on these two are also fully intact.
It was suggested to me that this was Joan of Arc (it isn't), while I thought maybe Richard III (not him either!) because his standard has a rose engraved on it although the colours are those of the Holy Roman Empire.
There are by far and away more books on Zinnfiguren than any other genre of toy soldiers and as I started searching for more info on these knights my friend Claudio de Angelis not only identified them for me but very kindly sent me the picture above which shows the complete set in the Babette Schweizer catalogue, the designs for the set were commissioned from the artist Hans Rohm in 1908 and they are still available today.
The firm was founded in 1796 by Adam and Monika Schweizer. Babette Schweizer ran the firm from 1872 until her death in 1896 after which it was run by her son Adam who retained the business in her name. After 230 years it is still run by the same family, the current owner being Karin Schweizer.
They are lovely, nice looking flats. I did a bit of digging on the company myself and they certainly have a long and interesting history and it's great they are still going and it is still in the same family, some back catalogue!
ReplyDeleteThey are lovely indeed Donnie, it's unusual to find flats of this size and my first thought was that they were much older, it seems there are three more pieces and it would be great to complete the set.
DeleteAnother wonderful post Brian! The three figures are excellent, and truly speak to the hey day of tin figure production! It's amazing to me that they are still in business with the same family in charge! Berlinner Zinnfiguren sells some of their pieces and they are very impressive indeed!
ReplyDeleteMany thanks Brad, it really is quite an achievement that such a niche business could survive so long in the same family, and thanks for the heads up on Berlinner Zinnfiguren I quite fancy getting some of those Landschnechts.
DeleteI had no idea that some flats were made that large. Very interesting that the Schweizer company has such a long history.
ReplyDelete