Toy Truck thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

Toy Truck

1945-1950 (manufactured)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This battery-powered mechanical military truck was manufactured by Toys Nomura, just after World War II. Nomura was a company borne out of the Allied occupation of Japan, immediately after the end of the war. The development of manufacturing businesses was a key concern of the allies and they helped establish the toy manufacturers that produced most of the tin toys globally around this time. Ironically, it was American and British military themed toys that were the biggest selling in the post war period, and so the Japanese manufacturers had to make toys depicting their occupiers. Towards the 1950s, as interest in the military moved on, the Japanese companies adapted the templates of their tin toys, printing them with space-age designs instead.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Offset lithograph on tinplate, stamped and hand assembled, with electronic circuitry, motors and rubber tyres.
Brief description
Battery powered tinplate US army truck, Nomura, Japan, 1940s
Physical description
Tinplate US Army 1st Division Jeep in silver with gun and radio set with antenna to rear, with 2 soldiers in battle-dress, one steering the wheel and one holding a phone. Battery operated, but battery compartment cover is missing.
Dimensions
  • Height: 14.5cm
  • Width: 28.5cm
  • Depth: 12.2cm
Production typeMass produced
Subjects depicted
Summary
This battery-powered mechanical military truck was manufactured by Toys Nomura, just after World War II. Nomura was a company borne out of the Allied occupation of Japan, immediately after the end of the war. The development of manufacturing businesses was a key concern of the allies and they helped establish the toy manufacturers that produced most of the tin toys globally around this time. Ironically, it was American and British military themed toys that were the biggest selling in the post war period, and so the Japanese manufacturers had to make toys depicting their occupiers. Towards the 1950s, as interest in the military moved on, the Japanese companies adapted the templates of their tin toys, printing them with space-age designs instead.
Collection
Accession number
B.214-2011

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Record createdMarch 8, 2012
Record URL
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