"At the very beginnings of civilization children's toys appear as one of the important elements of human development and one of the first records of design."
World of Toys project of Zagreb Ethnographic Museum consists of 4 exhibitions: Toys from the Croatian Heritage, From the World of Toys, Polish Traditional Toys and Toys Have a Heart. It was a nice winter outing for the whole family.
The most fun part was the central part of the exhibition, Toys form the Croatian Heritage. Most of the toys exhibited here belong to the Ethnographic Museum. The exhibition aims to demonstrate the wooden toy-making tradition and art of the Dalmatian hinterland, toys made in the villages of Prigorje and the Zagorje region that have been included on the UNESCO list of intangible heritage.
There are about 50 different wooden toys still being produced in Croatia (eg. horses, dollhouse furniture, wagons, whistles, birds, folk musical instruments) in the same way as in mid 19th century. Passed from generation to generation none of the toys is the same as they are made by hand, usually produced by men and painted by women.
I loved how the exhibition was set up. Dreamy wall decals were fantastic and exhibits of their own.
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| When I grow up I will be a Pegasus. |
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| My Barbie. |
They have a bunch of toys in a basket on the side to try out.
And a bunch of holes to stick your hands in and feel what the toys are made of...
smell what the toys are made of
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| Smell it! |
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| Dig in and find out! |
Nevertheless, P was still tempted to go where he shouldn't be going.
and touch what shouldn't be touched
The exhibition From the World of Toys features a selection of toys from the Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Russia and the Ukraine. Here are some of my favorites:
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| Doll House, Croatia 20. century |
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| Matchbox miniatures, Germany |
My absolute favorite from the whole exhibition is the Railway model made by kids from the Model making club. Specifically the grafitti written out on the railway building:
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| Sanja I am not as stupid as you might think! |
Toys from the Croatian Heritage and From the World of Toys can be viewed until May 31st 2013
Polish Traditional Toys can be viewed until March 6th 2013
and Toys Have a Heart is only to be viewed from March 21st – May 31st 2013 (we still have to go and see that one).
You can see some more photos in my facebook album.
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