Boxed battery operated toy robot, Chief Robotman, made in Japan by Yoshiya in the 1950s.

Boxed battery operated tin and plastic robot. The robot has a solid rectangular body, which is grey with a green panel on the front and three red buttons. Its head is square which is yellow with red/burgundy sides. There is a light at the top of its head and two for eyes. There is a circular antennae on either side. The arms are jointed at the top to allow movement, and are red/burgundy in colour. The box has a plain card bottom and printed card top. The image on top of the box is an animated version of the robot in action, with in a lunar landscape. The text reads: 'Chief Robotman, new action toy, he moves head around, spins radar antennas, walks, stops, turns all automatic, operated by battery powered motors, made in Japan.'

This object was acquired for the V&A Museum of Childhood's exhibition Space Age: Exploration, Design and Popular Culture, which opened on 22nd November 2007. It was bought at Christie's in November 2005 as part of a collection of robots and space toys. The collector, Paul Lips, ran an antique toy shop in Milan from the early 1990s, where he became particularly interested in space toys. The collection covered what he believed to be their golden age: 1955 to 1965.


After the Second World War, Japan became the pre-eminent manufacturer of tin toys through direct financial support from the United States for its toy industry, and through preferential access to US toy markets. Importantly, Japanese manufacturers were able to perfect small battery-powered motors, which gave Japanese toys a superior range of movements. One of the most celebrated subjects expressed in tin toys is space and space travel. Many highly imaginative toys were produced in the era of the Space Age (1957-1972), inspired by the widespread optimism of the times, and by a fresh public appetite for all things space.

B.39:1 to 3-2005