A history of toys

The range of toys is endless, and their history is vast, complex and fascinating. Antonia Fraser traces their development from the earliest examples of the Egyptian, Greek and Roman civilizations, through the Middle Ages and Renaissance, the rise of the German toy industry in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and the nineteenth-century optical toys and theatres, to the mass-produced novelties of today. This absorbing account of the changing trends and fashions in toys over the ages is accompanied by illuminating discussions of the influence of toys on the child's development, of the psychology of play, of the role of war toys and adult toys, of the strange appeal of 'grotesque' toys, and of the way in which toys have reflected the attitudes of the societies that produced them. The illustrations include a wide range of photographs in colour and black-and-white, many of them taken specially for this book, showing toys in museums and private collections all over the world, while a selection of prints, engravings and paintings depict the part played by toys in everyday life. Antonia Eraser's extensive research of this subject, together with her consultations with manufacturers, toymakers, teachers and doctors, combine to make this an authoritative and interesting work. 72 colour illustrations 230 in black and white