The Toy Museum in Figueres (el Museo del Juguete) – a visit to it gave us a lot of positive emotions.
A little background information. Toy museum of Catalonia was created from the private collection of Josep Maria Joan Rosa and Pilar Casademont Sadurní. The first public exhibition of the most outstanding pieces of the collection was opened in December 1972 at Palau Güell in Barcelona. In January 1973, the unique collection of toys was described in an article entitled “Night of the Living Toys” in the well-known weekly magazine Triunfo.
The article was such a success that subsequently, throughout the 1970s and 1980s, 20 more exhibitions were held, and in 1982 the Toy Museum, renamed the Toy Museum of Catalonia in 1997, was opened in the old Paris Hotel.
The current Toy Museum in Figueres, housed in the adapted headquarters of the former Hotel Paris, began operations in 1998. From its opening to the present, more than 900 people (including Surrealist genius Salvador Dali) have donated their personal toys to the collection.
We visited the Toy Museum in Figueres immediately after the Salvador Dali Theatre-Museum. In contrast to the sombre atmosphere of Surrealism in places, the Toy Museum has a bright, carefree atmosphere of childhood.
All the pieces are arranged on three floors (zero to two).
The ground (i.e. ground zero) floor is the visitors’ area, an information stand, children’s playground, and all sorts of temporary exhibitions and presentations. The time of our visit coincided with an exhibition dedicated to the famous Catalan folklorist Joan Amades. It is amazing that this person, who in 1933-1937 published a collection of traditions of Catalonia (and then and other regions of Spain) in 42 volumes, since his childhood had eyesight problems (he read through a strong magnifying glass), finished only 9 high school classes and had to work. Since 1915 Joan Amades was fascinated by the folklore of Catalonia, and his goal was to preserve and convey the country’s rich cultural heritage through his works.
The exhibition featured illustrated books by the great folklorist, his photographs, and interesting facts about him. There were many children in the hall on the ground floor.
After seeing the exhibition dedicated to Joan Amades, we go upstairs and enter the realm of toys. There is a lot to see here! You can see a collection of toys from antique times to the present day on the first floor. You can also see historical facts and archeological findings. It is amazing that the first toys date back to 3000 B.C. (!). During excavations a board game – an analogue of today’s chess – was found.
The museum’s main collection consists of games and industrial toys from the late 19th century to the present day, including tin toys manufactured in Barcelona during the interwar period; Catalan cardboard dolls; late 19th and early 20th century theatre books; mechanical toys of German origin; cardboard toys of Antoni Penas and an extensive collection of board games.
Some of the toys belonged to great personalities who donated them to the Museum. Such as the teddy bear of siblings Anna Maria and Salvador Dali.
The museum has stands of interest for both boys and girls (of all ages) 😉 – Dolls, cars … At each stand you stop for a long time, sometimes having opened a mouth with admiration. Here – toy sewing machines that look just like the real thing, Russian matryoshka dolls, etc.. The “Children’s Chemistry Laboratory” set is not inferior in content to the sets you can currently buy. Very impressed with the ‘Young Surgeon’s Kit’ and the picture of a doctor with a saw. Just like the poster from a horror film. 🙂
One board game (or set) that intrigued me was Journey Around the World. I wonder what’s inside. 🙂
Loved the war dolls in military uniforms from different countries. And what soft toys! There is a fox feeding a little pink animal from a bottle – just a miracle. I could do it myself. There are photos of Catalan children everywhere with their toys.
After admiring and taking lots of photos, we go upstairs where a model railway assembled by Barcelona resident Andreu Costa Pedro is on display. A great railway enthusiast, he dedicated 18 years of his life to building a toy railway. In the early 1960s Andrea Costa Pedro bought a set of locomotives, wagons and tracks and started his project, which today amazes with its realism and technical perfection.
Apart from the train, which at certain times runs on the tracks, the Vallvidrera cable car in Barcelona (leading to the Sierra de Collserola and Tibidabo Amusement Park) and the typical Catalan countryside have been recreated in great detail. This railway was donated to the museum in 2014 by Andrea Costa Pedro’s daughter.
Toy Museum in Figueres: useful information
Toy Museum of Catalonia opening hours:
October to May:
- Tuesday to Friday: 10.00 to 18.30
- Saturday: 10.30am to 7.30pm
- Sunday: 10.30am to 2.30pm
- Monday is a day off, except holidays and public holidays.
June, July, September – the museum is open daily:
- Monday to Friday: 10.30 to 19.00
- Saturday: 10.30 am to 8 pm
- on Sundays: 10.30 a.m. to 2.30 p.m.
In August the Toy Museum in Figueres is open daily:
- Monday to Saturday: 10.30 to 20.00
- On Sundays: 10.30 to 14.30.
Entrance fee:
- Adult: €7
- Children from 6 and up to 16 years old and persons over 65 years old: €5.60
- Free admission for children under 6 years.
- For an additional €1, an audio guide is available in four languages: Catalan, Spanish, English and French.
Official museum website: https://www.mjc.cat/en/.
And in the end I would also advise you to visit Dali Theatre-Museum in Figueres.
