Tin soldiers
Flat, painted figures cast in tin in Nuremberg and Fürth – war, hunting and history in miniature.
Nuremberg tin founders began making flat figures in the 18th century, and Johann Gottfried Hilpert made soldiers, animals and scenes from history. The figures were sold in boxes and used for play and to re-create battles.
In the 19th century they were made in great quantities and sizes were standardised. Tin soldiers were boys’ toys and a way of learning about war and the nation’s history.
Materials: Tin and lead, paint
Manufacture: Cast in slate moulds engraved on both sides; the figures were painted by hand.
Flat figures, only a millimetre or so thick.
Hand painting, often simple on cheaper sets.
Hollow, three-dimensional figures came only in 1893 with William Britain in London.