Playset, pirate ship (model no. 5135), Playmobil, 2011-2015

Pirate ship playset, with pirate figures, original box, instructions, and multiple accessories.

The playset is a large two-masted sailing ship, with detailed rigging and many working features. It is made mainly from injection-moulded plastic, textured to resemble specific materials, like planks of wood, in shades of brown and grey. It can be moved along on two wheels set into its base. It is decorated in some places with printed paper stickers.

At the stern of the ship is a great cabin containing an integrally-moulded bunk, desk and banquette, accessed from the top. The four thick paper sails are printed with 'stitched canvas' detail, one is also printed with a large, black 'Jolly Roger' symbol of a skull and two crossed swords. At the top of the foremast is a red pennant, decorated with a black sticker showing a white skull. Atop the mainmast is a Jolly Roger flag: a skull with two crossed bones. The foremast also has a crow's nest, below which is attached a crane-arm which can be wound using a mechanism at the base of the mast. Behind the bowsprit is a working winch, connected by a length of grey cotton string to a plastic anchor. In the centre of the main deck are two large hatches, made from grey plastic, which can be opened and slipped downwards into grooves to reveal the ship's hold. Along both port and starboard sides are a row of four opening gunports, inside which can be seen the golden muzzle of a cannon. Above the great cabin is a quarterdeck with a turning ship's wheel, made from red plastic. Behind the wheel is a slot into which the gold 'coin' accessory can be fitted.

With this playset there are a number of accessories:

Figures
- Pirate captain, a male figure with a menacing facial expression and red hair. He wears a black tricorne emblazoned with a golden skull, and a long black waistcoat over a bare torso. His chest is decorated with a large green and purple tattoo of a squid or octopus. Around his wrist are two removable 'gold' bracelets.
- Pirate figure, a male with a menacing expression, bald-headed with stubbled face, and wearing a yellow bandana. Printed onto his torso is a blue embroidered waistcoat over a flowing shirt, he has red trousers and black seaboots. Over his shoulders is a plastic bandolier, into which a sword may be fitted.
- Pirate figure, a male figure with a smiling face, black ponytail, his torso printed with a ragged yellow and black striped shirt, tied around his chest. On his legs are printed a pair of ragged brown trousers. This pirate is barefoot, and has a grey plastic slave collar fastened around his neck.
- Pirate child, smiling face, with ragged blue shirt and green trousers.

Figure accessories
- Blue and yellow parrot, can be clipped on to various items and parts of the ship.
- Treasure map, printed with an island design, a 'seal' is attached to one corner.
- Boat hook, grey plastic.
- Spade, light grey plastic.
- Boarding axe, light grey plastic.
- Two flintlock pistols, dark grey plastic.
- Blunderbuss, dark grey plastic.
- Blunderbuss pistol, light grey plastic.
- Cutlass, with basket hilt, silver-grey plastic.
- Rapier, with basket hilt and crossguard, silver-grey plastic.
- Hanger sword, with crossguard, golden plastic.
- Hanger sword, heavy blade with much 'battle damage', dark grey plastic.
- Dagger, grey plastic.
- Ladle, bronze plastic.
- Megaphone, bronze plastic.
- Telescope, bronze plastic.

Ship's accessories
- Two spring-loaded cannon, gunmetal grey barrels on red carriages with black wheels. There are four cannonballs: red-orage spigots with round, black rubber tips.
- Lift platform, plastic resembling an open-strutured wooden platform, with black plastic lifting bars.
- Gold coin or gong, reversible. One side shows a Jolly Roger consisting of a skull, shark and a serpent; the other a quadrated design showing a shark, a serpent, a seahorse and a 'CE' symbol.
- Barrel or cask, black plastic.
- Bucket, light brown plastic resembling wood, with a black plastic handle.
- Sack, light brown plastic, tied-up with a 'rope'.
- Lantern, yellow and dark grey plastic.
- Sea-chest, blue plastic with grey bindings. Opens.
- Grappling hook, grey plastic, with cotton string 'rope'.


There is also a set of printed paper assembly instructions, and a printed card box.

Purchased by the Museum in 2017 [2017/713]

Pirate ships were the centre of a pirate’s world, as homes, transports and places of work. The first act of a pirate’s life ‘on the account’ was usually to seize a vessel, rising from below to mutiny against their officers, creating a more egalitarian system amongst themselves and all swearing to a specific code of conduct. Pirates favoured small, fast ships which could outrun heavily-armed naval vessels, and which could easily navigate shallow inlets and island environments.

It is not known for how long children have played with toy boats. Several archaeological finds dating from around 1000 AD, which are believed to have been children’s toys, have been excavated in Scandinavia since 1900. With the explosion in technological advancement brought about by the Industrial Revolution, toy boats became very popular from the mid-19th century, and even more so in the years preceding the First World War, as Britain and Germany raced to develop their respective navies. Real ships have long been associated with cutting-edge technology, as war machines, transports and pleasure craft. When considered in these terms, their popularity as a subject for toys is not surprising, making them somewhat akin in spirit to other toy vehicles, like space rockets.

The German Brandstätter group have produced toys under the Playmobil trademark since 1974. Their signature toy is a 7.5cm figure with a smiling face, known informally as a ‘klicky’. Playmobil have manufactured toys with a wide variety of themes, ranging from sports to pirates, Stone Age to Space Age.

Like many toys produced under the Playmobil trademark, this highly detailed two-masted pirate ship strives for a high degree of historical and functional accuracy. However, the attempt to represent pirates accurately was also a cause of controversy for its manufacturers. One of the figures included with the set, clearly representing a non-white character, is accessorised with a slave collar. The explanation for this decision was that the figure is supposed to be a liberated African slave, a scenario which is rooted in historical fact. For example, around 50% of Blackbeard's crew were recorded as having been non-white. However, this explanation was not widely accepted by consumers and the toy was discontinued.

B.92: 1 to 38 -2017