item details
NameBoard game, Aeroplane Race Around New Zealand
ProductionToytown Company; manufacturer; circa 1940s; New Zealand
Classificationboard games
Materialscardboard, plastic, paper
DimensionsPart: 395mm (width), 308mm (height), 34mm (depth)
Registration NumberGH026005
Credit linePurchased 2021
Overview
Produced in the 1940s, this New Zealand-made game reflects the development of commercial aviation in New Zealand and excitement about the new possibilities of air travel. Pioneering flights in the first decades of the twentieth century had demonstrated the potential of aircraft, and the first commercial services in New Zealand began in the mid-1930s. Air travel was exciting and ultra-modern, and looked to be the way of the future. In the 1940s, though, it was still extremely expensive and few people could afford it, so had to settle instead for flying around the country on a game board.
References
- Aimer, Peter. 2006. Aviation. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/aviation
- Te Papa. 2014. Exhibition text for Air New Zealand 75 Years: Our nation. The world. Connected. Te Papa Corporate Records.