Triceratops (Small World Importing)

I cannot believe it, my 300^th review! How can it be that a single person has written 300 toy dinosaur reviews in 13 years? Well, aside from just enjoying it I also write reviews as a distraction from the trials of life, and anyone that has been paying attention to current events over the last several years will understand why my output has been so large lately! Do you have an inkling to doom scroll social media? Write a review instead. Find yourself checking the news too often? Write a review instead. That’s my life advice and it seems to work for me. When I write about these toys, I have nothing else to focus on but the toy right in front of me and my keyboard. Actually, I’ve written far more than 300 reviews. On the Animal Toy Blog I have 177 reviews to my name, and on the newly launched Monster Toy Blog I have 8, for a total of 485 reviews between the three blogs. When I found this blog 15 years ago, and it inspired me to collect toy dinosaurs, I never thought I would someday have the most reviews on it!

For such a momentous occasion I wanted to review something special but after writing 299 reviews what’s left that can be considered special? I decided that at the very least I had to review something different, and not my usual stuff from Mattel or Haolonggood. So, I got on eBay and searched “vintage dinosaur”. Being the holiday season, I kept my budget small. I am a parent after all. After looking through several pages I came across a dinosaur figure I had never seen before. It instantly captured my heart and for $10 (with free shipping) I knew my search was over. Today we’re looking at the Small World Importing Triceratops bank.

This bank is stamped 1987 on the bottom and it appears that Small World Importing made several banks during that time period. Among the dinosaurs I could find were a Tyrannosaurus, Stegosaurus, Brontosaurus, and this Triceratops. The Triceratops was easily the best of them, but I might pursue the others in the future, if I can find them for a similar price. Although plentiful on eBay most of them are listed between $15-35. Although I like this Trike, I’m happy that I didn’t have to pay more than $10 for it.

I’ve seen a lot of odd retro dinosaurs, but this Triceratops is one-of-a-kind. I’ve nicknamed this figure the “Triceratoad”. Toadceratops also works. It is the sort of creature I imagine would result from the actual splicing of amphibian and dinosaur DNA. It has a fat, squat, compact body with a large deep head, brow horns growing directly out of the frill, no neck, and a prominent dewlap along its throat. Nearly every aspect of its anatomy is stout and compact, including its little limbs and tail. Judging by the look on its face this is definitely one of the dim-witted dinosaurs of old. The bank is rather small by bank standards and measures 7″ (17.78 cm) long and 5″ (12.7 cm) tall. You could probably fit about 10 bucks in there.

The Triceratoad is covered in wrinkles and rows of large scutes, which aid in giving it its toad-like appearance.  It is such a rotund beast that it is positioned straddling a rock, as if it’s incapable of supporting its bulk and needs to take a break every few steps or so. It’s hard to tell where the bulk of the belly ends, and the rocky base begins. The base itself is a combination of layered rocks and grass. Since this is a piggy bank there’s a slot on the back and a plug on the underside.

The entire figure is painted in a blend of brown and dark green but there seems to be some variation with these, and I’ve seen some brighter green variants on eBay. There’s very little of the dinosaur’s underside to be seen but the underside of the tail is orange. The rocks that the dinosaur is resting upon are the same color as the dinosaur, but the adjacent rocks are tan and the grass around them is green. Given its age I would not be shocked if it was painted with lead paint.

The Small World Triceratops bank is a rather unique and charming fellow that’s sure to stand out in any collection. It should appeal to anyone with an eclectic assortment of dinosaurs that appreciates the odd, whimsical, and vintage figures that this hobby offers. I’m somewhat surprised that these dinosaur banks escaped my attention for so long. It’s nice to come across something like this after 299 reviews and 13 years in the same hobby.