TOY INDUSTRY IN THE ERZGEBIRGE - TWO COUNTRIES - TWO PATHS

District Museum in Most, in collaboration with the German association Förderverein des Museums Olbernhau e.V., will explore the post-war history of toy production on both sides of the Erzgebirge border over the next two years. Erzgebirge toys are a central theme for both partners. The Most Museum, as the leading partner, has received funding for this project titled "Toy Industry in the Erzgebirge - Two Countries - Two Paths" from the program for cross-border cooperation between the Czech Republic and the Free State of Saxony. The total budget for the project is €237,450, of which 85% is provided by the EU.

The project on the Erzgebirge toy industry aims to capture the post-war history of wooden toy production on the Czech and Saxon sides of the Erzgebirge and present it to the professional community as well as the general public, including school youth. Toy production, as a complementary industry to mining and its subsequent industrial manufacturing, is part of the shared cultural heritage, and its exploration will support the inclusion of the Erzgebirge mining landscape in the UNESCO list.

The history of the German toy industry is well documented, but only up to the year 1945. Research on toy production on the Czech side is almost completely lacking. No sources could be found for the companies VERO and DEHOR. The task of this project is to close these gaps on both sides of the border.

Currently, a thorough research investigation is being conducted, contemporary objects and documentation are being sought, eyewitnesses are being tracked down, and archives are being searched. The main outputs of the project will be a professional publication, a traveling exhibition, and a documentary film, which will be made available to schools for teaching regional history, among other things. To further popularize the topic of the Erzgebirge toy industry, the project websites and Facebook pages will contribute, where news will be regularly published.

As noted by the director of the Most Museum, Mgr. Michal Soukup, the project is being realized at the last minute, as the last eyewitnesses are of advanced age and are quickly disappearing. Without their statements, we would not gain a comprehensive view of this topic. We therefore ask the broad and professional public, especially eyewitnesses, to contact us if they can provide us with objects, machines, and equipment related to toy production in the Erzgebirge. Personal memories in the form of testimonies are also welcome. Do you have old, unused wooden toys in your attic and want to support the project? Offer them to the District Museum in Most.

If interested, contact us at infomuzeum-most.cz.

Link to the project website: https://www.hracky-spielzeug.eu/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/HrackySpielzeug

Publication - Erzgebirge Toys in the Light of Folk Art (from 2011)