Toys, toys, toys. What are they, and what makes them so special? Why do simple objects hold such a grip on our hearts and minds? Toys are more than playthings. They are threads running through the whole of human history, as old as food, shelter, and the company of others.
The Essence of Play
At their core, toys are a record of imagination, the most fundamental human capability. Through play we learn about ourselves, work out how to deal with the world, and discover how we connect with one another. A toy is a small tool for discovery, empathy, and invention.
A Historical Glimpse
One of the most surprising things about toys is how little their basic ideas have changed across thousands of years. Take the wheeled horse from Karanis, Egypt, dated to around the first century AD.
(Wheeled horse. Karanis, Egypt. Around the first century AD.)
Even now, thousands of years later, it is instantly recognisable as a toy.
Toys were made in many ways. In the Greco-Roman world, artisans mass-produced them for wealthier families, while many households simply made their own and passed them down through generations. The ancient Greeks often had children give up their toys as a rite of passage into adulthood, dedicating them at a temple. Curiously, adults would then collect very similar objects, simply recategorised as something other than toys. These objects have always been woven deep into human life, well beyond play.
A Modern Glimpse
Set that ancient horse beside a modern one from Holztiger, and something interesting appears: each piece reflects its own age.
(Holztiger Horse. Germany. Present day)
The Holztiger horse looks to the late Middle Ages, roughly the 1200s to 1600s. It carries a saddle and bridle and a caparison, the fabric draped over a horse like an outfit, marked with the coat of arms of its owner. A caparison was both armour and fashion, offering some protection from arrows while displaying heraldry.
The Karanis horse, by contrast, appears to wear a simple blanket, typical of its time. Saddles had only reached the Roman Empire around the first century BC and took time to catch on. Neither horse has stirrups: the Karanis horse predates their invention, while their absence on the Holztiger figure is a stylistic choice.
Toys are timeless in concept, and at the same time they are windows into the exact moment they were made. The craft beneath them stays remarkably constant, even as the details shift from one century to the next.