THE RENWAL VISIBLE HORSE

This was one of the earliest Renwal Visible animal kits, and one of the longest lived. Kit number 807, The Visible Horse, first appeared in 1961, and was still listed in the Renwal catalogue in to the 1970s. It was later re-issued by Skilcraft in the 1990s. It depicted a Thoroughbred, a type widely used in equestrian sports.

The Visible Horse was described on the box top as 'An Accurate Anatomical Model - assemble...take-apart - re-assemble' and 'complete with ALL VITAL ORGANS - SKELETON - TRANSPARENT SKIN'. The model was 'Developed in Consultation with Dr. W.C.D. HARE, Associate Prof. and THOMAS N. HAVILAND, Associate, School of Veterinary Medicine UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA'. As usual, it came with 'an authoritative HANDBOOK'. Some boxes also have 'Parts undecorated and paints not included'.

Scalemates give the scale of this kit as 1/4th, which seems very large. The Renwal instruction sheet clearly shows the scale as 1/7th LIFE. The model was over 14 inches (35cm) long, and 12 inches (30cm) high.

A boy and girl were shown on the box top, studying the model, and the Handbook. The kit was moulded in the standard colours for a Renwal Visible kit: clear plastic for the outer body, bone-coloured plastic for the skeleton, pale pink for the internal organs, and black for the display stand.

The kit was described in Renwal catalogues as: Thoroughbred quality throughout ! All the strict attention RENWAL has paid to its other "see-thou" models has been lavished on this new member of the family. Carefully sculptured in a classic stance. THE VISIBLE HORSE is another sure winner for your stable of scientific hobby kits.

Retail $5.95

This is the Scalemates entry:

visible horse* - Scale Modeling Search (scalemates.com)

Renwal photographs:

VINTAGE 1961 RENWAL VISIBLE HORSE MODEL KIT IN ORIGINAL BOX | #2062153097 (worthpoint.com)

Vintage 1961 Renwal THE VISIBLE HORSE Model Toy - Contents Unopened / NM | #1966530848 (worthpoint.com)

Vintage 1961 Renwal Visible Horse Model - Complete | #2011337647 (worthpoint.com)

Craft House re-issued most of the Renwal Visible kits under the Skilcraft name, including the Visible Horse. The parts were moulded in the same colours as before, but it seems the stand was no longer included. Kit number 74628. In 2006 Skilcraft was acquired by Chartpak, of Leeds, Massachusetts, a company specialising in art products.

Skilcraft photographs.

Skilcraft Visible Horse Anatomically Accurate Equine Model Kit | #2073610050 (worthpoint.com)

Scalemates also list a Lindberg re-issue in 2007, as 76015, under the name Transparent Horse. I am not sure if this is the same kit. The size of the model is given as being slightly larger than the Renwal model, and the pose seems slightly different, but I am going solely by the box illustrations, so I could be wrong on this.

I also found this Visible Horse kit - I think the company name is Mediterraneo. Never heard of them.

Mediterraneo Horse Equine Anatomy Model Kit Transparent Nova Scientific | #1798787704 (worthpoint.com)

There is also a 4D Vision Horse Anatomy Model by 4D Master, which has a clear side and a solid side, with pre-finished internal organs. This kit has also been issued by Revell as part of its X-Ray series.

Most photographs are from Worthpoint, and one from Ebay.

Paul Adams from New Zealand

Instructions via Paul Adams