Toy train, Thomas the Tank Engine

This toy train is Thomas the Tank Engine, a fictional storybook character who is a steam locomotive. He was created by Reverend Wilbert Awdry for his son Christopher. He first appeared in 1946 as part of a series of books called The Railway Series. The early books in the series were written by Reverend Awdry and the later ones by Christopher.

All of the locomotives in The Railway Series were based on prototypical engines; Thomas has origins in the E2 Class designed by Lawson Billinton in 1913.

This Thomas toy train was donated to Te Papa by Luca Gibbon. Thomas was one of Luca's absolute favourite toys but he also enjoys listening to the Thomas & Friends stories read to him from books and watching the television series on DVD. Luca shares his passion for Thomas with millions of children both from New Zealand and around the world. 

The toy train is part of a group of objects collected to represent some of the key moments and everyday life of three year old Luca. He is part of Te Papa's collecting contemporary New Zealand childhood project, an ongoing project that includes children in the University of Auckland's Growing Up in New Zealand research.

In the 2012 research report - Now We Are Born it was reported that the majority of New Zealand European children had stories read to them on a daily basis but it also commented that the children in the study were born at a time when the use of media and technology is very common for children and that they are exposed to technology on a regular basis. Luca's enjoyment of the Thomas stories and films is significant as an example the type of television he enjoys watching. He is also very keen on playing computer-based games and iPods.