Clockwork mouse toy, circa 1970's.
When I introduced this toy to the children at school, they were at first extremely dubious! Toys today are operated by electricity or batteries, and the idea of a toy which simply 'worked' was a bit much to take, especially as the mouse seems to have a mind of its own, moving in completely random ways. As they became more used to it, they began to become fond of 'mousey', suggesting it was a 'clever mousey' - the 'mind of its own' seemed to support this!
This clockwork mouse is made of tin and a hard type of plastic
called 'impact plastic' or HIPS (high-impact plastic). It works on a
clockwork mechanism and spring and has no type of computer chip,
battery or electric power source. There are two wheels on the bottom of the mouse which move it forward while its tail spins around, occasionally lifting it up into a different position.
I'd love to hear some stories from people who grew up with toys like this!
A similar toy mouse is held in the Powerhouse Museum Collection, in Sydney. You can see it by going to the Powerhouse Museum Website. Just click here!.
If you would like to see other clockwork toys, you could visit a museum like the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney (click here to visit their website) or Leuralla Toy and Railway Museum in Leura (the Blue Mountains, NSW) (click here to visit their website). There will be museums wherever you live where you can look at this sort of old toy.
