Author Archive: admin
‘Le Jeu de Massacre’

Two years after our publication of ‘Fernand Martin, toymaker in Paris’ we, Arthur Verdoorn and Lourens Bas, were very happy and surprised to read an article in The Antique Toy World of December 2016. Renaud Fournier described the discovering of ‘Le Jeu de Massacre’. It is marked in the lower right as well as the […]
The Martin Exhibit which took first price at The St. Louis World’s Fair 1904

The Fernand Martin booth included a centrepiece representing a fun fair on a square, with stages and performers and musicians. All the people at the fair are Fernand Martin toys. F. Martin was awarded First Prize for this entry! (see book on page 176)
Le Joyeux Contrabassiste (1904)

Unknown toy by F. Martin. Mechanism: clockwork H. 18 cm. E.T. Coll. The picture of the stage of the centrepiece representing a fun fair on a square, shows the bass player. And since we have never seen a second one, so far, we assume the bass player was especially made for the World Fair. If […]
184: La Petite Marchande (1901)

Mechanism: clockwork H. 18 cm, l. 20 cm. There are two different versions of Martin’s Orange Seller that we know of. One vendor with an empty cart and one with cart filled with the fruit. Both vendors wear a bustle under their skirts. This version is not part of our book but would fit wonderful […]