Skiing Bunny Rabbit windup tin toy

Item:     Skiing Bunny Rabbit windup tin toy
Origin:  Japan, c. 1950s

Quite literally –  a ski bunny.

This delightful skiing bunny rabbit windup tin toy was made in Japan in the 1950s. The little fellow doesn’t bear a trademark, but is clearly marked “Made in Japan” on the ski boots and embossed into the bottom of the skis.

Constructed mostly of tin, this downhill racer has a painted plastic head, metal ski poles with rubber baskets and fixed arms. These baskets are frequently missing from the skier toys, so a great bonus. Sporting a bright, detailed ski sweater, red ski pants and matching boots, the bunny stands atop bright orange skis.

This toy works on a fixed windup key with a clockwork mechanism. When wound, the skier takes off ‘downhill’ in a straight line ‘carving’ right turns every so often.  This is an awesome little toy – simple in its movement, but it just oozes retro 1950s cool.

The skiing rabbit measures 5.5 inches tall and is 5 inches long (14 cm x 12.5 cm).

Condition:
A fun skiing toy in excellent working condition with bright colours. No rust, litho is bright and unmarked except for a few scrapes on the back and what appears a splash of old clear adhesive. The white rubber ski pole baskets are a bit dirty and one is partially turned up. Otherwise, this is a very cool toy – great for the tin toy collector and/or ski buff (as you might guess, Annie is a bit of both!).