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Toy Marbles: History and Varieties

They Gather No Moss



(They Just Keep Rollin' Along)

Game master, Miles Standish, gazed pensively into the camera, and then into the expectant faces of his audience.

Addressing the game finalist, James Crawford, a kindly, bespectacled, diminutive septuagenarian with an expensive smile, Miles announced, "James, for $64,000, what do turtles, pearls, onionskins, bumblebees, sulphides and chinas have in common?"

James, initially seemed puzzled, but then, broke into the glowing grin his many fans had grown to admire.

"Those are all types of children's marbles," he said.

On that day, James Crawford took home the $64,000 grand prize.

Indeed, all the items in the question are kinds of marbles, the technical names of which are used accurately only by a knowledgeable few, but the items themselves recognized worldwide.

Over 500 million people around the world collect marbles, although official estimates come in at around 400 million. (We are adding another 100 million, because it is widely understood that many individuals, including successful business executives, maintain secret stashes of their most faithful shooters in their desks.)

In this article and the next, we are going to discuss various aspects of marbles, their history, types, manufacture, artistry, and value.

We invite you to come along for a journey into a world that just keeps rollin' along.....

Continue reading Comments (0) Monday, 9:01 pm | March 8th, 2010

A Brief History of Christmas Tree Ornaments

ToysPeriod Presents
Christmas Tree Decorative Art
A Brief History

As we approach the 2009 Christmas Season, ToysPeriod invites all to join us in the festive spirit of the days and weeks to come.

How better to begin the celebration than to dwell for a few moments on the story of one of the Season's most colorful traditions, that of the Christmas tree with its accompanying decorations.

We have all heard the legends.

The Egyptian and Druidic priesthoods prized evergreens as symbols of everlasting life.

Ancient Rome celebrated Saturnalia with wreaths hung above doorways.

16th century Germany is rumored to be the first place where candles were used as indoor tree decorations. After seeing how beautiful the stars were at night, Martin Luther is purported to have wished to recreate this glorious image for his children.

To briefly interrupt our story here, Toy Tech has always been a bit suspicious of historical texts describing the juxtaposition of candles and trees, especially in the confines of wooden structures.....

Continue reading Comments (0) Friday, 12:44 am | November 27th, 2009

Ask Toy Tech Mailbag 7-1-09: 50s LEGO and Daisy BB Guns

With the recent piece Ask Toy Tech ran regarding a condition system for vintage collectibles, we have been receiving a steady stream of inquires from readers about what their collectibles may be worth.

Here are two such inquires just today.

Lisa S. writes, "I was given a lego set from the 60's. I am told it is the first one. It has the esso lego and the mat and the box (which is in rough condition). The boards to stick the legos on and many but not all of the original legos. Is this valuable? Do you know a place I could check to see what the value would be?"

Toy Tech answer:....

Continue reading Comments (4) Wednesday, 2:45 pm | July 1st, 2009