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Toy locomotive
Erik Alfred Ekdahl1913
Nordiska Museet
Stockholm, Sweden
Model of steam locomotive
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Details
- Title: Toy locomotive
- Creator: Erik Alfred Ekdahl
- Date Created: 1913
- Location Created: Avesta, Krylbo
- Subject: Toy, locomotive
- Physical Dimensions: w27 x h16 x d10.3 cm
- More Information: Locomotive driver Erik Alfred Ekdahl gave a toy locomotive to his son Tore, who was five at the time, in 1913. This is a copy in reduced scale of the steam locomotive he drove on Sweden's main railway line. His son's cousin explained that they were not permitted to play with the locomotive on the floor at home because it was so heavy. They did not play with it much, but mostly held and felt it. The model is 27 cm long and made of iron, while the wheels and other components are made of brass. It is painted green and black and looks just like a real locomotive, with a driver's cab and steam engine. Ekdahl made the model either at Krylbo workshops or in the small workshop he had at home. Krylbo, which is just outside Avesta, was one of Sweden's main railway junctions around 1900. At the same time, the grand railway station that still remains was being built. Steam locomotives and the expansion of the railways symbolise industrial development and the new opportunities it offered. It is easy to imagine the father's pride as he showed the locomotive to his son. Future prospects looked bright and maybe the boy would follow in his father's footsteps and get a job on the railways or in the metal industry one day. As the railway was gradually electrified, the toy trade followed suit. Model railways with trains travelling between stations and tunnels have long fascinated both adults and children. Made in 1913 by Erik Alfred Ekdahl, born in Grytnäs, Dalarna
- Materials and Techniques: Wheels and some details in brass.
- Type: Toy
- Rights: Photo: © Nordiska museet
- External Link: http://www.digitaltmuseum.se/things/lokomotiv/S-NM/NM.0292302
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