Original Item: Only One Available. This is both amazing and interesting. Manufactured during WWII specifically to assist both Naval personnel and aircrews to identify both friendly and hostile ships by their silhouette on the ocean water. There were instances of attacks taking place on friendly war ships so with these models pilots could become familiar with vessels from a great altitude and sailors from a distance on the horizon.
What we have here is a partial British and French set in the original case measuring 16.5" x 4" x 11.75", which still has the handle and stays closed correctly. Along with this are some additional models from other sets, which mainly look to be U.S. ships. These models are relatively heavy for their size, being made from lead, and all are painted some shade of battleship gray. The ships contained range from aircraft carriers to battleships to cargo vessels. Each model has incredible detail, however they may be missing small pieces such as masts that have broken off.
The original U.S. government issued wood chest is marked:
U.S. NAVY MINIATURE
BRITISH & FRENCH SHIP MODELS
MARK I SUPPLEMENT I
There are 24 slots for ships, which would be glued to wooden bases that slide into the slots. There are 16 ships present, so 8 are missing. The bottoms of the bases of each are labeled with the type of ship it is, which is quite useful.
The additional ships included look to be from other sets, possibly ones that were never issued in boxes like the British & French models. Many of these look to be made by COMET, a major manufacturer of these ships both during and after the war (as toys). Some are unlabeled, but we see that we do have the following labeled ships:
- 3 X IOWA CLASS U.S. B B
- 1 X INDEPENDENCE CLASS U.S. C V
- 1 X GRAF ZEPPELIN GER. C V
- 1 X FULTON CLASS U.S. A S
- 1 X CURTISS CLASS U.S. A V
Not really appropriate for the bathtub as all are made from lead, but never-the-less this makes a wonderful display that is exceptionally rare. Ready to display, or use to complete your sets!
