We visited the MINT Museum of Toys

We decided to visit the MINT Museum of Toys after knowing there is an exhibit dedicated to Robot Toys. The museum houses a world-class collection of vintage toys and collectible items in an international award-winning contemporary building on 26 Seah Street. If not for my nephew’s sharp eyes, we could have missed the entrance as I have mistaken the place for a pub!

The museum is founded by a private collector in 2007 as the first museum in the world known to be purpose-built for toys. According to the museum, it still remains the only one.

The collections are segregated into 5 levels and we were recommended to start from the highest level.

Roof-top – Enamel Sign Gallery

Other than having a restaurant, the roof-top also functions as a mini gallery for numerous enamel signs.

Level 5 – Outerspace

We saw huge collections of robots, astronauts and spaceships. There is also a little corner dedicated to writing our thoughts on what we foresee will occupy the sky for decades to come. My nephew said jet pack will be a common form of transportation by then.

Level 4 – Characters

On level 4, we found familiar characters like Mickey Mouse, Batman and Popeye. Popeye is apparently still well-known to children these days. My nephew and son have watched his cartoons before and said it was really funny.

Tin Tin! I read a few of his books before.

Level 3 – Childhood Favourites

This is where toys favoured by children in the East and West are displayed. Other than Mickey Mouse, the children didn’t recognize any other characters there.

Level 2 – Collectibles

Level 2 displays toys from the UK, Netherlands, Austria, Chile, India, and Singapore. The same toy can be recreated in different forms by different cultures.

pedal car — Pedal car, in existence since the late 1800s but only widespread in the early 1900s. The red colour in this car contains lead, a material banned today.

The children were spellbound by this musical box collection and spent a good 15 minutes exploring the gadget.

Basement

There is another Enamel Sign Gallery at the basement which also functions as another restaurant.

Getting to the MINT Museum of Toys

You can reach the museum from City Hall MRT. It is located just along Seah Street, opposite of Raffles Hotel.

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