Tin Toy & Doll Museum

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As an ardent toy fan, the museum owner is always more than happy to talk about the origins and features of these wonderful toys

Toys full of memories from nostalgic childhood

On the 3rd floor of an apartment block, this museum holds a collection of some 15,000 tin toys and dolls made between the 1940s and 70s and gathered by the museum owner over 35 years. Of these, some 3,000 are on display, with some ten percent being rotated each month. There also are corners for company toys like Fujiya Peko, Ultra-man, Astro Boy and Tetsujin 28-go.
The museum also stages special exhibitions - for instance, past ones have included a Barbie show, a show on the history of Japanese toy cars and a photo exhibition featuring Kyoto streets. In addition, there are toys that the Showa Emperor played with as a child and a display of the robot supplied to the movie makers of 20th Century Boys.
All in all, this museum is brimming with toys, some that visitors have only seen in old black and white TV shows - nostalgic toys that roll back the years to a time of childhood dreams for many adults.