Seeking to expand their kit range, and jump on the model insect bandwagon, Aurora, of West Hempstead, Long Island, New York, released two kits in the early 1960s, each containing three Butterfly models.
Like most other insect kits, they were short-lived models, and do not seem to have been re-issued by anyone in the decades since their initial release.
At one time Butterfly collecting was a popular hobby, and these sets allowed a collection to be assembled without even going outdoors. Despite the series name - Butterflies of the World - both sets actually contained a mix of Butterflies and Moths. No scale was given on the box, but the models are usually described as life-size, or 1:1 scale.
The 1960 Aurora catalogue, shown in full on The Box Art Den site, devotes half a page to the first set.
Butterflies of the World
'An exciting new series for the whole family', suggesting the sets were aimed at girls as well as boys.
'No painting ! Now your finished model can look "just like the pictures on the box"! Colorful decals - included in every package - are easily applied, stay permanently in place !'
3 in 1, 98c. No catalogue number is given, nor is there any mention of scale.
Both Series 1 and Series 2 are mentioned in the index of the 1961 Catalogue, but the page covering these kits is not included.
Neither set is listed in the 1962 edition.
Scalemates
The illustration in the 1960 Aurora catalogue, and some boxes, lack the Series #1 lettering, other boxes have it. Series #2 boxes all seem to be numbered.
Kit contents. The names of the Butterflies are not always given correctly in lists, but these are taken directly from the box tops and instruction sheets.
561-98 Series #1
Giant Swallowtail
Monarch
Luna Moth
562-98 Series #2
Mourning Cloak (not Morning as sometimes stated)
Ailanthus Silk Moth (not Atlantic)
Polyphemus Moth
The box lid clearly states 'This kit contains 3 plastic butterflies', and 'Full color decals...plastic assembly kit'. The instruction sheet also states 'This kit is molded of styrene plastic - Use only Aurora's Fireproof Styrene Cement and Aurora's Speed-Dry Enamel. Assure yourself of a perfect model every time!'.
Copyright Dates
Again, the copyright dates printed on the box and on the instruction sheets do not match. I am assuming the full-colour boxes were designed and printed first, so they could be shown in the catalogue and in advertising. The simpler, black and white instruction sheets would likely have been produced later, once the kit design and parts had been finalised.
Both the Series 1 and Series 2 boxes are dated 1959 on the side; Series 1 instruction sheets have a copyright date of 1960. I can not find a clear shot of the instruction sheet for the Series 2 kit - even the best is hard to read, and could be either 1960 or 1961.
Some listings on Worthpoint do give a date of 1961. Scalemates give the release date for 562 as 1959, and 561 as 1960. Aurora Model Kits by Thomas Graham says 561 was available 1960-61, and 562 was 1961 only.
All the kits were moulded in the same fawn-coloured plastic. The parts for each model came on a single small sprue, which is pointed out on the instruction sheet, with a warning not to get the parts mixed up. All the models have the same parts break-down.
Two body halves, four wings, six legs, and a single-piece antenna moulding. The models are not complicated, but do look as though they would have been fiddly to assemble, and very delicate.
There is no stand, although they could have been mounted in the box itself, which seems to be what some people did. All the models have their wings spread out, so the markings can be clearly seen.
The complex wing markings came on three large decal sheets. The markings for each Butterfly or Moth being printed separately.
There are not too many sales listings for either of these kits, but of the two, the Series 1 set is more common than the Series 2 set.
This trade ad from a catalogue lists the Series 1 kit, and states that Series 2 will be 'Available in July', but no year is given - 1960 or 1961 would be my guess.
Box contents of Series 1, and a shot of the instruction sheet, showing the copyright date of 1960.
Box of Series 1, showing the copyright date of 1959 on the side, and built-up models.
Great photos, including the centre of the instruction sheet.
Series 2
Close-ups of date on Series 2 box. Date on instruction sheet is very hard to read - could it be 1961 ?
Box, decals, parts.
Paul Adams from New Zealand
Not as much fun as Godzilla's friend Mothra. Now that model as a scale 1:1 would be something!
ReplyDeleteYow! Those wings must have been a devil to put those big decals on!
ReplyDeleteMore skill than I've got for sure!
I guesse they included the decals as most people would have been intimidated by the thought of having to paint such elaborate markings onto the models themselves.
ReplyDeleteIt seems that Aurora was not the only firm interested in Butterflies. According to the book Sixty Years of Airfix Models, by Jeremy Brook, The Crowood Press, 2015, Airfix also considered such kits in the early 1980s.
ReplyDeleteUnder the entry for 1981 is this: 'Airfix proposed to release kits of butterflies to go with their bird kits...The moulds for the butterflies and their transparent wings were made and are now with Hornby, but the butterflies never emerged from their cocoons'.
This is the only reference to these kits I could find. There is no mention of what types of butterflies, the scale (life-size or larger ?), or if they were to be single kits or sets like the Aurora models. The Airfix Birds always came with a suitable base, such as a tree branch. The smaller birds also came in male and female pairs.
Amazing kits for young Lepidopterists Paul! Better than catching them, gassing them and pinning them to cards that's for sure!
ReplyDelete