Featured Vintage children's blocks

Not sure which forum to post this in so I'm taking a chance with this one.
Found this mixed bag of children’s blocks which date from different time periods but all are well used and vintage. I have grouped them into “kinds” for the photos. The choice of images for letters is interesting. We have the usual pig, goat, jackal but also a Zebu (humped cattle from India), an Xebec (Mediterranean trading ship), and a Zax (roofing tool for slate shingles). X-Rays weren't around until 1895 and probably not a common word in use, but Xebec was I guess One of the small block groups has images of an “Indian”, a “Russian”, a “Zulu” and a “German”. (Definitely not PC.) Nothing as common as an A for apple. We instead have an A for ale! The plane and car definitely look older but the oldest grouping seems to be the one with the fire engine (horse drawn), wheelbarrow, and rounded beehive. Any idea of dates and should I try to clean them or just leave as is. There is definitely played-with wear and fading already, so I’d like to try and preserve details still there and enhance if possible. I read that they should be periodically oiled or waxed with a paste but don’t want a sticky surface. Not sure what I’m going to do with them yet but I enjoy the research and social history.

 

I would leave as is. And you should be able to date by the car, plane and fire engine.

Debora

 

Thanks Debora. I will leave them natural as I might do more harm than good. Agree about the dates. The horse drawn steam fire engines with that silhouette I have dated to the mid to late 1890s so that dates that group. The car and plane are in the same group and the plane looks like a barnstormer so that dates those to the 1920s. I expect the others all fit in between somewhere with maybe the 4 marked Japan being the outliers. They really are so interesting. There's a bit more interest in the content on these blocks than what we see on modern versions though the "peoples of the world" group is quite cringy by today's standard. They were probably viewed as educational though and I think they are pre World War I given the Zulu and the Russian fashion examples. Imagine a kid knowing what a xebec and a zax are!

 

They're charming.

Debora

 

The rounded beehive is called a skep.

Debora

 

Well Debora, that sent me down the google rabbit hole looking at skeps. I have never heard that term. So interesting. I read the modern bee hive for commercial use was invented in the 1870s but assume most late Victorian rural households still used the skep to provide their own honey so is an easily recognizable choice for a kid's block and fits the timeline of the wooden wheelbarrow and the fire engine. Honestly, these little blocks might be worth little monetarily but proving to be such a fascinating slice of social history, so valuable to me.

 

How many sets are your blocks from?

Debora

 

I have put them into 6 sets as seen in the first photo according to "like" details on each. There is one single block on its own. Here is a pic of them showing the similarities of each set.

 

I have some blocks to add to the mix (posting one)... They are a little bit different, telling a story using the main letter on the block: {Y} Yonny Yelled in the Yard Yesterday. I'm guessing Yonny is a variation of Jonny/Johnny? And thought they are probably 30s/40s...? This is one of the better in condition that I have, others have faded beyond readability. Pretty dirty too, I just dusted them off with a rag.

 

What an interesting block this is CatEyes. I have never seen one like it and now I'm going to have to find out about this type. I have never heard the name Yonny but it fits in well with the story. Thanks so much for sharing.

 

Thanks for starting this thread @Bingamum : ) Will add more if I find anything.

 

Thanks so much for sharing this @Bookahtoo, it didn't show up in my search?? Nice to have a more definitive date range (assuming it's correct). Looks to be a complete set...wish mine was in as good condition!