K is for Kulikov, the Battle of Kulikovo

We looked at these briefly a while ago when Mark (Serge) sent us a shot I couldn't resist putting-up, but I did say at the time we would return to them, as they are quite simply some of my favourite figures / one of my favourite sets. And while I'd always intended to show them, and knew all about them from 2009, it's taken a while to do them the justice they deserve . . .

. . . as for the longest time I only had the three, two bought from Chris Smith back in the Queen Charlotte Hall days (probably - from the subsequent correspondence - 2008?) of Plastic Warrior Magazine's show in South West London, the third coming in since?

He had one of those 'bar meal' baskets with a load of them and being a tight-wad (and STILL - at the time - a small-scale only collector) I chose one each from either side in two of the nicer colours (I now wish I'd chosen one of the putty grey ones as they seem the least common!), because I'd gone 'over-scale' with Russian flats a few years earlier!

This autumn, I got into the habit of buying one or two stand-out pieces every fortnight on feebleBay, and one of those purchases was the latest iteration on the Kulikov set, which are currently available in 'Army' bags from Plastmaster in Russia and this is how they arrived, the one; short and fat the other; long and thin (shades of André Maurois' Patapoufs et Filifers!), both half-empty . . . but complete!

Header artwork differs on the two, and the crinkly, card-less bags with a metallic-foil like printing is very Chinese and redolent of other rack toys prepared for European jobbers and the bazaars of the Middle East, I've found a few now and Peter Evans has sent some to the Blog (see RTM's passim).

Here they are from one side . . .

. . . and the other!

Issues over the years seem to follow this order, but it's not necessarily accurate or definitive, and there may be a step missing, in addition, TSC (Toy Soldier Company) seem to have been the main source for them in the USA and I don't know if they went-out lose, in Russian or Chinese packaging or re-packed in TSC bags?

LKZ / Leningrad Carburetor Factory - Original Issues (1980's)

• ·         Red/Blue
• ·         Red/Charcoal
• ·         Red/Navy Blue-black
• ·         Turquoise/Orange
• ·         Yellow/Sky Blue
• ·         + Chalk-marl/Putty Grey, Brown, Dark Turquoise, Gunmetal (and others?)

Alisa / 1-Toy (Moscow) - Interim Issues (1990-2000's)

• ·         Gold/Orange

Plastmaster - Recent/Current Issues (parent was Playdorado, now Knopa-Knopatoys)

• ·         Gold/Silver

Vita Productions (Hong Kong) - Holder of the Tool/s? They also re-issue one of the 1917-1922 Civil War sets with a tchanka-wagon and seem to re-bag Supreme/SP Toys Knights and Saracens sets

Which gave me a nice battle, with the three extra chaps!

While I waited for the overdue set from the USA, and as the Blog post (you are now reading) started to take shape, I asked Chris if he had any left, and he sent me a shot of his in nice subdued/pastel shades of pale blue and yellow.

As mentioned above, Mariya translated these back in 2009, and I sent it to Chris, who'd provided copies of the inserts to any interested customers.

[I have a literal translation, but this is the grammatical one]

HISTORICAL NOTE

At the beginning of the 14th century, while [as?] the power of Moscow grew, the wider Russian people began to fight against the Mongol/Tartar hoards for their freedom from slavery.

On the 8th September 1380 at Koulikov in the fields by the banks of the river Don a decisive battle was fought between an army of the 'Golden Horde' under Mamai Khan on the one hand and a Russian army led by the great Count Dimitri Ivanovich Donski of Moscow on the other.

The Battle - where the Tartars were defeated - became known as the Battle of Koulikov

History states that the battle began with a dual between two 'champions', one from each side, being Peresvet, a warrior monk for the Russians and a Mongol warrior named Chelubei, both of whom died in the course of the battle.

"Koit", Narva. 4272-1991.20.000 [probably village of Koit/town of Narva?]

The other insert translates thus;

Manufacturerd [by the] Leningrad Component Factory [Possibly 'metal-fabrication factory']

Named Koybishev [Koybishev is a famous General]

Name [of game] "Kolikov Battle" [Battle of Kulikovo]

Item [Art.No.]: IPI-0231891

Price 10 Rubles. 00 Kopeks [Expensive for a toy of this type]

Standard Number 17-296-75       Technical Control No. 37.306.011-91

For children between the age of 7 - 12

[The next two pertain to the over-printed stamps]

Quality Control Stamp:   [18-OTK-22 ] Date of Issue: [26 Dec. 1991 ]

Contents List
1. Mamai Khan [x]1 [Leader of the defeated Mongols]
2. Hun warrior with saber [x]1
3. Chelubei [x]1 [Personality]
4. Hun Standard  ['bunchuk'] Bearer [x]1
5. Hun warrior with bow and arrows [x]1 [Composite] [this is the two-man vignette]
6. Hun warrior with bow [x]1 [simple] [this is the rear-shooter]
7. Hun warrior with shield on his back [x]1
8. Russian mounted warrior with sword and shield [x]1
9. Russian warrior with bow [x]1
10. Russian flag bearer [x]1
11. Russian 'Opalchenets' warrior with horn [x]1[militiaman with a bear-spear]
12. 'Peresvet' [x]1 [Personality]
13. Russian mounted warrior with sword [x]1 [raised?]
14. Count Demitri Donski [x]1 [leader of the victorious Russians]
15. 'Box' [carton/case/liner]
16. Box [outer]
17. Historical reference sheet

"Koit", Narva. 4271-1991.20.000 [Repeated]

Leningrad
Manufacturing
Alliance

'Toy' (Igruschka)

In the meantime, I had found another colourway, in the US, these matching the ones I'd originally procured from Chris all those years ago; 'aqua' blue and Chinese orange. But . . . these have a carbon footprint you wouldn't believe, well you'll have to! First is their trip to the 'States (which may have been back in the 1990's when these were suddenly available about the place, such as Chris's little basket of mixed colours), they then came to London . . . where they sat in a Royal Fail cage for three or four days before . . .

. . .being sent to Thailand for Christmas! So fuckwitted, and when I eMailed them they claimed no knowledge of the act, nor that they had even/ever been in possession of them, lying shitbags!

Well, if ever a seller deserved the feedback "Top eBayer . . . A++++" it's lg_minis, who finally got his money on the 20th January, for an item he'd posted on the 3rd or 4th of November! In the meantime, and despite much co-operative eMailing from him and I and the USPS (not our lying Parcel Farce though!) he had given me a refund when we basically gave up all hope of ever seeing it, only for it to turn-up about two months late!

While all that was happening I was having (ongoing) problems with Paypal, and despite ringing them and requesting several new passwords I can't get into my account, so he had to list something crummy for the full price so I could BIN, I suggested he list a stick or a chewed pencil, but he listed some tatty ('ish, but rather nice!) aviator sunglasses, which despite my paying within an hour or two; already had a watcher!

Oh Dear! It really was a 'mini adventure' and I register my thanks to LG again here!

All of which gives us a current total as seen above. And thanks to Chris, and Mark/Serge for their part in this story over the years!

I've seen a note that Chinese pirates copied the set, dropping one of the foot poses, but every set I've seen is complete, the author of the note didn't identify which pose was left-off the piracies and with the mould in China (Hong Kong) and in general use, there's no real need for a knock-off set?

The internet is full of them, and they aren't particularly rare, but they are really nice! A link to Lev Razumovsky (the artist's) pages is to be found on the original 2017 article, where you will find the hard-plaster moulds, sketches and other toy stuff he was behind.

C is for Contribution Season - XVIII - LKZ Figurines from Serge (Mark)

So a bit of Russian Flat Plastic today, but possibly one of the nicest sets ever made, and certainly among my absolute favourites, despite the fact that I only have two or three and they are in storage!

On the making of them, they were sculpted by Lev Razumovsky; a renowned sculptor in the former Soviet Union (in Western terms: somewhere between Charles Stadden and Hillery Page - but as good as either!). Especially when you consider he had lost an arm fighting the Germans as a 17-year old?

This set, the Battle of Kulikovo - held on the banks of the Don, considered a pivotal point in Russian history, was one of his finest pieces and worthy of one of Russia's finest sculptors! As Russian flats go, it's quite late; these were sculpted in the mid-1980's.

Originally intended for metal-alloy (Mazak-Zamac) manufacture in the Leningrad 'Karburettor' Zavod (factory) which may or may not be connected to the Leningrad Forging factory ( Л Ш ) we've already looked at here on the Blog, it was in fact produced in a nice soft'ish polystyrene plastic from the 'off'.

Due to the vagaries of Hotmail's image transfer at the moment and (I think) - the fact that it's a mobile 'phone picture, this is not the best we've seen on the blog, but it gives us a reason to return to this set in the future and there'll be lots of links below.

These are the mid 'era' issue, coming one-army-to-a-bag with green 'site map' header cards. The set never got made in metal, due to the economic trials following the fall of the 'Iron Curtain', the first issue was produced in the most lovely colours; oxide-red, jade green, turquoise, Chinese-orange, a less pretty bone-white and the like, other (later) sets were in sky blue versus bright yellow, grey v. orange and then these red/Imperial blue sets were issued.

There are 15 figures in the set, on 14 bases, and they are chunky bases! But that is what makes them so lovely, they are a treat to handle having a firmness, which - coupled with the level of etched-detail - makes them 'feel' substantial.

More recent issues are still findable in gold and silver, carried in Russia by FoB importers Alisa Toys, under their 1 Toy branding a while ago and manufactured in China by Vita Production Limited in much leerier carded artwork; although there are rumours of copies with a missing figure, and these gold/silver set may be them?

The originals are lovely, and whatever you collect, or whatever the brackets of your collection, or indeed the criteria you set yourself to collect under, I think you should have a few of these!

Lev Razumovsky tribute site with hard plaster masters (don't forget to click 'next')and the full set of figures.

Thanks Serge!

I tried to find them on the Russian toy soldier sales site, but my Russian isn't good enough ('my Russian' is non-existent!), so if anyone else could post a link to other images - that would be nice.