Herald figure or Not Herald Figures That Is the Question the internet has shown up with some interesting items. Erwin Sell uncovered this unusual Britains box on Ebay which is leading to questions.
Herald figure or Not Herald Figures That Is the Question The Item
Some time ago I spotted this box online been sold .The set according to seller was Herald license in France figures. The logo on the box looks quite unusual to me. I asked the seller for permission to share the picture which he did.
As you can see more close the figures and the bases with clearly wording indicating the figures are licensed by Herald to be made in France.
But the figures are made in a different mold from the original or what looks as copies in my opinion. Not dissociating of course the fact the odd pink skin color in Indians.
At close look I can see different faces and heads than those of the originial Herald. Meaning that a different mold and possible artist was innvolved. Also another difference from the British and French Herald are the lack of knife scabbards of the Indian belts. The figures were not painted and different bases. The lack of paint resemble more the Timpo style multi part pieces figures mold assembling.
Some of the figures were seembled mixing cowboys and Indian parts too. I have only seen Indians depicted with white or light pink skin in European Italian figures before. I have seen this color use in crude copies of Indians made in Hong Kong too.
My question is. Does anybody know more as when this license was given and what factory in France made these copies of Herald figures?
Herald figure or Not Herald Figures That Is the Question Final Thoughts
As you can see these figures are an interesting mystery. We are checking various sources to find out the story. So stay tune.
Herald figure or Not Herald Figures That Is the Question Update
Markus Lecksheid has come up with another box of the Herald Swoppet Indians made in France. From this box we can see that they did belt with scabbards for the knifes. The other set has them missing for some reason. The horses are a copy of the Herald horses used with the original figures. The box shows that it was made in Paris. I have no idea what the F.F. means
What about the horses? Are they original Heralds? Or French copies?
All have been done in France ,horses carry same base and marking.
The words bellow (Herald) in base says ” brevete SGDG” that means it is an official product (brevete Sans Garantie Du Gouvernement).
May be license only for toy soldiers type or just for word “swoppets” ?
Andrey the figures are mark Herald below and box is typical Herald by colors ,logo and words. The license was given by Herald to the maker to produce Herald figures, no just swoopped figures.
In FRANCE any brand could do swooppet back then and they did with out need license. COFALU, Cyrnos and many others did then.
Problem is they are far from near or close to Herald figures, they looks crude copies ;still they have all Herald permit license logo license.
The BB and ST Hong Kong Brands posted here before are far more close to Herald or better than these .
I’m wonder how HERLAD let some one produce figures so cheap and where made and for how long!?
Any question I had made in French Blog are responded as to not been seen by several collectors as children .So they are not well known back in 60s when one seller indicate the figures were made/sold and Box date indicate.
Just recently few had been show up in boxes and loose.
My thoughts…
best…
Maybe they are pirated versions. Almost anything can be copied today. They just used the bases with that logo maybe. Also that would explain a couple of things. Like the missing sheaths, from one of the 2 sets. It doesn’t really answer when, and what company actually had the agreement in France though, which should be on one of the boxes I would think. It is curious it isn’t.
Thanks to Good French collector friends I had been informed of the correct information about the mystery copies HERALD swooped license figures and it had been resolved.
The following is a translation from original French data that was extracted by a collector from a French manufacture several Toy Catalog from France (provided in pictures as well)
I may be able to post pictures later ….
The great French researcher Jean-Yves GAUME; who did an incredible investigation and I had granted permission to post here
says…
I’m on a track to try to explain this case of “Britains Swoppets made in France”.
I will rely on my 3 professional catalogs (yearbooks) “Toys and Games” from the years 1959, 1963 and 1978 that I own.
First the Toys and Games Catalog 1959:
I started from a 1959 catalog toy advertising that I had not really seen, because it is in the “Miscellaneous Games and Toys” section and in particular a sub-section “Toys for sale at 100 francs”;
Here it is, on page 301: I discover a brand “FRYD” unknown for me:
This cowboy intrigued me, with his ability to disassemble it in parts, at one time, in 1959, when the swoppets did not have to run the streets.
As it is indicated, FRYD manufactures “under exclusive license” the objects of the trailer, of which this Indian … it looks a bit like a cowboy Britains but I am not sure …?
The label Fryd Paris is also unknown to me.
In this 1959 catalog, in the great chapter of the “Fabrications”, Fryd appears:
In the section “Indian camps, ranchos and subjects” (page 194)
But also in the sections “Animals and exotic subjects” (page 185), “Animals and farm subjects” (page 186), “Miniature cars and motorcycles” (page 188), “Cyclists” Service stations and accessories “(page 200),” Traffic Signals “(page 201),” Soldiers “(page 201), and under” Plastic miniature toys “(page 204).
In this 1959 catalog, Fryd logically appears in the main chapter “Manufacturers”, page 395:
But there is no mention of Britains in the text;
And Fryd does not appear in the main chapter: “Wholesalers and other distributors”, nor in the chapter “Importers and agents of foreign houses”.
Let us now turn to the Toys and Games Catalog 1963:
First there is no longer this nice page of advertising Fryd.
Nor does Fryd appear in the chapter “Fabrications” or in the section “Indian camps, ranchos and subjects” or in the other headings (“Animals and exotic subjects”, “Animals and farm subjects” …).
Note that in these sections, “Britains” does not appear either.
On the other hand, in chapter “Manufacturers” page 404=bingo, the mention “license Britains, Ltd” appears well !!!
Toys and Games Catalog of 1978: This time, FRYD only appears in the chapter “Manufacturers”: (page 465)
The address changed, and the Britains license disappeared)
No trace of FRYD in the chapter “Fabrications”, in any of the sections.
On the other hand, Britains appears well in this chapter “Fabrications”
Example (page 206)
On page 596, in the chapter “Importers and Agents of Foreign Houses”, CEJI appears to be the importer of Britains:
To conclude :
FRYD, with its own presses, produced the first Britains Swoppets made in France, thanks to a Britains license (at least, perhaps before 1959), then either produced or imported the Britain swoppets Saw the license Britains still in 1963 ….
After THAT when I have no info the Britain and herald line appear to be not longer produced but only direct imported by CEJI ARBOIS in France!!!