Help identifying Manufacter ? (1 Viewer)

[jager7080]

Quick story behind these figures is , While my ex-girlfriend & i were in Germany...She left to visit her family in Budapest Hungary...While she was shopping she ran across a shop selling toy soldiers & bought this lot for me...It consists of Von Paulus , Rommel , two Hitler's & a Hungarian soldier...The bottoms of these figures are not stamped nor marked in any way...I have never seen these ever before anywhere...These were bought in the mid 90's...Just curious if anybody would have a clue as to who the maker is ? thanks...

 

[PanzerAce1944]

Did these come in any type of box. ? Maybe there is a clue....country of origin....makers name in small print. ???

 

[jager7080]

Did these come in any type of box. ? Maybe there is a clue....country of origin....makers name in small print. ???

No box...She bought them off the shelf thay were displaying them on...they wrapped them up for her but no identifying packages...Some shop in Budapest , Hungary...I have been curious about this for years...Since i just joined this forum , i was hoping somebody would have some idea...I remember her also sying there were other one's too...I asked her what they were but she had no clue...She just picked out five she thought i would like...

 

[DMNamiot]

These are interesting. They have the same square bases as Cando have but the sculpts and details arent there unless they are really early or from a maker that became Cando. I guess you will need to come back to Europe and sort them out.

Dave

 

[jager7080]

These are interesting. They have the same square bases as Cando have but the sculpts and details arent there unless they are really early or from a maker that became Cando. I guess you will need to come back to Europe and sort them out.

Dave

I will look into Cando as you suggested...Haven't been in Germany in almost six years now...Got family in Launenberg , Keil & Geesthacht...But these figures were purchased in Hungary by my ex-girlfriend , if i had been there i would have questioned who made them...Thanks for your help...

 

[theBaron]

Actually, they remind me of another manufacturer's work, that we've discussed elsewhere in the form, something-Spielzeug-Figuren or something similar, sold in Vienna. I have some photos, from eBay auctions, of the figures I'm thinking of, in their original packaging. Now, those were Seven Years War figures, but the style of the sculpting and painting was similar. If I can find the references, I will post back with them.

Prost!
Brad

 

[theBaron]

I also recall seeing auctions on eBay for figures made in Hungary, sold in Budapest, which were also similar in style, but they were of Hungarian national historical figures, there were no Germans among them.

Prost!
Brad

 

[jager7080]

I also recall seeing auctions on eBay for figures made in Hungary, sold in Budapest, which were also similar in style, but they were of Hungarian national historical figures, there were no Germans among them.

Prost!
Brad

My ex-girlfriend did say they had a selection of toy soldiers @ this shop in Budapest , but when i asked her she did not know what they were...So they could have been of Hungarian historical figures ?
She did at least manage to grab me a Hungarian ww2 soldier which i really like...This was i believe back in 1994...Thanks for all of your help...it has been driving me crazy for years , not knowing what the company was that made these...Thanks again for your insight it is appreciated...

Joe

 

[theBaron]

OK, I found a thread on the manufacturer I was thinking of, Vienna Metal Figures ("Wiener Metallfiguren"). Here is a link to that thread:

http://www.treefrogtreasures.com/fo...of-Vienna-Metal-Figures&highlight=zinnfiguren

They could be the makers of your figures, possibly. They didn't make the Hungarian figures I was thinking of, though; I'm pretty sure that that was a maker in Hungary itself. But I haven't found my references for those figures yet, though.

Prost!
Brad

 

[DMNamiot]

I figured if anyone would have a clue it would be the Baron! I thought they might have been a forerunner to Cando merely because of the base types and subject matter. I dont have any references to any Hungarian Makers but if I get to Budapest this coming year I will certainly look for the shop.

Lets hope we can sort this one out since its a great mystery!

Dave

 

[theBaron]

Hi, Dave, I'm going to look for Cando, too, and see what I can find. I don't think I've ever seen any of their figures, at least, not when they were identified as such, with original boxes or packaging, let's say.

Prost!
Brad

 

[jager7080]

Hi, Dave, I'm going to look for Cando, too, and see what I can find. I don't think I've ever seen any of their figures, at least, not when they were identified as such, with original boxes or packaging, let's say.

Prost!
Brad

It only surprises me that this shop in Hungary either received these figures without packaging or they removed them from the packages to display them as my ex said they were displayed on shelves in this shop , & when she purchased them they just wrapped them up for her...i looked at the reference figure from your link , they may certainly be from that maker , maybe the hint being that they are creators of Hungarian military figures which in & of itself is a rare thing...That is why i like the Hungarian soldier she purchased for me...When or Where would i ever be able to get a ww2 Hungarian soldier ?
Thanks for all your help Brad & Dave...Dave if you plan to visit Hungary this year & try to locate the shop , the only thing i would geuss is it had to be close or around shops my ex would have liked...ie shoe shops...

Joe

 

[DMNamiot]

Hi Joe,

I will keep that in mind! maybe I'll be in luck and my wife will see some shoes she likes even if she isnt much a shoe shopper...{sm4}

Mean while I will certainly keep looking around to see if I can figure out who made these.

Dave

 

[Roustam]

They look like a line that Russel Gammage did for Rose Miniatures.
Russ

 

[theBaron]

They look like a line that Russel Gammage did for Rose Miniatures.
Russ

Hi, Russ!

Actually, your post has made me take another, closer look at them. I don't think they're Gammage's Rose figures, though he did have some German generals in his catalog. I looked more closely at the bases. The only bases I know of for Rose are the thick sqaured bases with the corners knocked off (8 sides, but not a regular octagon), or figures with a small square or rectangular base cast integrally with the figure (apparently that was the original solution Gammage chose for the base).

But these bases are all regular, they look the same for each figure, and they remind me of 2 makers: August Benkert's Monarch Miniatures, or Ramon Labayen's figures. They both use square bases that have a thick profile, and these figures also have a similar level of detail to both of those lines.

Having said that, I don't know offhand if Labayen did any WWII Germans, though. I'd have to check that.

Prost!
Brad

 

[DMNamiot]

Hi Brad,

I considered Monarch as well but dont have enough info handy to make an educated assessment. Maybe your armchair generals have some more info. It would be cool to solve this one since I am interested in the Hungarian Soldier.

Dave

 

[theBaron]

Hi, Dave!

Monarch's tough, because he doesn't use the Internet, still uses classic mail order. I have one of his catalog lists around here somewhere, and I don't think it has illustrations, at least, not too many, if any. I think Rich Dutkin as the Monarch catalog at his website, too, Dutkin's Collectibles. I'll have a chance later to look for mine and see if any of the descriptions match the figures in the picture.

In the meantime, here is a photo that includes 2 Monarch figures, to illustrate what I'm thinking:

The third and fourth figures from left to right are British SYW grenadiers, by Monarch. The base is a very similar shape, if not the same.

Prost!
Brad

 

[theBaron]

Maybe not Monarch, looking at both photos. Monarch's bases look to have more of a bevel to the top edge. In any case, I check my catalog and see if I can find anything similar listed there.

 

[ucla1967]

Hi Brad,

I considered Monarch as well but dont have enough info handy to make an educated assessment. Maybe your armchair generals have some more info. It would be cool to solve this one since I am interested in the Hungarian Soldier.

Dave

Hi Dave,

I don't know who made them either, but also found the Hungarian soldier to be interesting. I am not aware of any manufacturers who made World War II Hungarians with the exception of Authenticast where the figures are prone firing. To rectify this, I have started ordering special sets of World War II Poles, Hungarians, Slovaks, Dutch, and Romanians from Hiriart. I ordered the first three countries mentioned in 2011, but they were only able to make the Poles, so I am reordering the Hungarians and Slovaks again this year. When I finally get them, I'll post photos in the Hiriart section.

 

[DMNamiot]

Hi Brad,

You might be correct the bases are a bit more beveled than I originally thought and the sculpts are a lot more detailed. So I am not sure where they were made.

The Hiriart sets you mention sound very interesting! I look forward to seeing them when you get them. Its odd but it seems that many of the German Allies and foes of WWII are ignored by nearly all of the hobby. I would love to see someone do a line of Hungarian Soldiers from WWII as well as other units that fought on the eastern front. Maybe someday down the road we'll suddenly see an intereste develop in some of the other guys who were in that War. Lord knows there are some great WWI offerings out there, even if a lot of them are long retired they still come up on ebay so you can find them. But thats a discussion for another thread.

Lets try and solve this mystery.

Dave