TOY AND MINIATURE MUSEUM: AN ODE TO SIMPLER TIMES

We visit the Toy and Miniature Museum – Stellenbosch’s little hidden gem that brings back nostalgic memories.

We take a trip to Stellenbosch and pay a visit to the enchanting world of the Toy and Miniature Museum. It’s here among the town’s many historic buildings, in an 18th Century Parsonage that we find an ode to simpler times.

The Museum is a 25 years old nostalgic place that “brings back memories for older visitors, who spend hours here”, says Lamees Petersen, who oversees Marketing & Educational Programs at the Stellenbosch Museum.

Among it’s treasures is the world’s smallest kitchen from the 1920s that fits into a matchbox, and the replica of the icon farmhouse in Uitkyk Wine Estate near Stellenbosch. The interior around the back of this impressive 1:12 scale model has three 19th century rooms upstairs, complete with furniture from that era. The three downstairs sections portray a main room, a voorkamer and an 18th century kitchen.

Another wonder housed by the museum is an intricate miniature model of South Africa’s Blue Train that took four years to build. South Africa is a country with many impressive train routes. The beautiful winelands and the breathtaking oceans of the Cape, make for some of the most picturesque railroads in the world. The Lima train travels from a replica of the town of Stellenbosch through the Cape Winelands and mountains to the Karoo before returning back to Stellenbosch again.

Long before remote controlled vehicles there were miniature cars, known as dinky toys that first emerged in the 1930s. There are over 2000 cars on display and the dinky toys, which were gifted by actor Limpie Basson, are some of the most valuable.

The Museum is a wonderful place – a magical place where you are taken back to a time before television and computers. We’re happy it exists to hold a key to the past and allow future generations into a part of our lives that so many can relate to.

Visit the little hidden gem in Stellenbosch. Opening times are Monday to Friday, 09h00 to 16h30 and Saturday and Public Holidays, from 09h00 to 14h00. Closed on Sundays.

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