Whatta I Got? Please Help Identify

[tootnkumin]

I was going to suggest a PM to the OP, but seeing he's only posted 6 times, unlikely he'll see it, unless he gets an email notification. Would love to know if he did get it valued.

 

[WorldsFairDan]

World's Fair Train.

Pugh,

Thanks for posting this great specimen. I too have a live steam model locomotive and several cars that were supposedly from the Chicago World's Columbian Exhibition of 1893. They seem to be a bit smaller than yours but very similar in craftsmanship, though not nearly as nice as yours!

What I've gathered so far is that every country that was represented at the Exhibition brought examples of their transportation in the form of actual working vehicles/locomotives, etc down to small scale models of actual machinery currently in use at the time of the Fair to show off their latest "cutting edge" technologies. It's also been suggested to me that many locomotive models were built by apprentices in the shops as part of their training for large scale working versions and would possibly have been employed to create these models, so it's certainly possible that one from Egypt would have been there. I've recently contacted someone in Chicago to help me identify mine and have had no luck. There is a large library and museum in Chicago that may have more information, but you may have to go there yourself and do some research.

Best of luck and let me know if you run across anything.

Dan

Many thanks for the interest in this thread. Got some interesting leads to other sites where I have posted inquiries. (active thread on RM WEB UK http://tinyurl.com/mb6m9vv and finscalerr.com http://www.finescalerr.com/smf/index.php?topic=2284.0 )

@stoker....wonderful photos of the Chicago Fair and thanks for starting the finscalerr thread. The smokestack drawings are a hoot. Your Chicago Fair comments make sense, maybe this thing was used to promote the builder’s products.

@Colin...haven’t found any “model engineering” sites yet...still looking

@Ray D...can’t seem to post to gscalecentral

@ scroggin...Egyptian seems to be the choice so far

Important detail I originally omitted: the rails are 6 inches apart. Is this a common modeling gauge?

I’ve put some more photos at: http://tinyurl.com/msuen69

Bottom line is that I really haven’t learned much about this wonderful model. Who built it and when? I really find it hard to believe that such a handsome piece of craftsmanship wasn’t marked it someway my its creator!

Whadda ya think my next step should be? Contact a high end auction house?