Are you ready to unleash your inner child? Fans of The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, you can now interact with The Little Prince! It this part of the experience at MINT Museum of Toys.
Located along Seah Street at the Bras Basah.Bugis Precinct, the MINT Museum of Toys is a private museum with a quirky, yet fascinating, collection.
In case you are wondering why “MINT” is capitalised, that’s because it is an acronym for “Moment of Imagination and Nostalgia with Toys”.
The museum, which opened in 2007, is the brainchild of toy collector Chang Yang Fa who grew up in the 1960s. Over a period of more than 30 years, he has amassed more than 50,000 toys and nostalgic collectibles in his personal collection, including some incredibly rare pieces.
The MINT Museum of Toys is the way for him to share part of his collection with the public and other vintage toy enthusiasts.
The MINT Museum of Toys: Nostalgic Collection of Childhood Toys Paired with AI Technology
The MINT Museum of Toys is a place that captures childhood toys from a bygone era. However, it has now also harnessed today’s technology with the world’s first Museum Interactive AI Ambassador in the form of The Little Prince!
The Museum Interactive AI Ambassador follows the MINT Museum’s 2023 launch of the “Around the World with The Little Prince”, an interactive seven-stop augmented reality (AR) trail for patrons to explore the story’s themes together with The Little Prince and the museum’s toys in 2D and 3D animations through 37 scannable AR cards.
World’s First Museum Interactive Artificial Intelligence (AI) Ambassador: The Little Prince
The Little Prince is a timeless and symbolic character who embodies innocence, curiosity and wisdom.
He explores the vast universe with a childlike sense of wonder and his appreciation of what truly matters in life is similar to how the museum honours the history, cultural and social significance of every vintage toy and collectable in its collections. Which was why he was selected to be MINT Museum of Toys’ AI Ambassador!
Interacting with The Little Prince at the MINT Museum of Toys
At the entrance of the museum, we were greeted by The Little Prince as the museum’s AI Ambassador. Ask him anything and he replies quite promptly and intuitively!
We had fun asking him a range of questions from: “What is this museum about?” , “What is your favourite exhibit?” to “Can you tell me more about yourself?”, “Where are you from?” and even “Where are good places for lunch around here?”
Designed by technology provider, Intellify SG, to serve as the museum’s information and ticketing and information channel, the cutting-edge generative AI assistant is the first of its kind in the world and offers natural and intuitive two-way live interactions that provide accurate and consistent information while also offering a personal customer service touch.
Beyond Information & Ticketing
Interacting with The Little Prince also gives you knowledge about the history and background of the MINT Museum of Toys, introduces you to exhibitions themes and toy collections.
It also helps you get the best out of a museum visit through recommendations of programmes, activities and experiences you can enjoy alone, with a friend or family.
Children also have fun through interactions with the friendly AI Ambassador before entry since he is located at the entrance, happy to provide any information on hand!
If unsure about visiting MINT Museum of Toys, no harm popping by to engage with The Little Prince to find out more on site. And if keen, you can simply scan QR Code on screen to purchase tickets on the spot to seamlessly enter the museum.
What’s at the MINT Museum of Toys
Last renovated in 2019, the MINT Museum of Toys is located at a tall and narrow pre-war shophouse across from the east-facing side of Raffles Hotel. The building has been renovated and designed with slats along the facade to allow light in while still protecting the collection inside from sun damage.
The private museum offers a chance to discover vintage toys and childhood memorabilia from over 40 countries ranging between the years of 1840s to 1980s in its 6 levels including permanent curated exhibitions at Levels 5,4,3 and 2.
These are themed after Outerspace (futuristic toys of past eras), Characters (from cartoons and comics), Childhood Favourites (including teddy bears and dolls around the world and puppets such as Punch & Judy) and Collectables (vintage toys as artefacts) respectively.
There is also a Vintage Enamel Advertising Signs collection at The Public Gallery Rooftop.
Its five stairwells landings also featured different unique exhibitions: Beatles Memorabilia, Bedtime Stories, Spooky Horror, Birth of Astro Boy and Vintage and Decorative Tins.
The current collection showcased is only the tip of the iceberg as its actual collection of toys amount to over 100,000!
Rooftop: Vintage Signs
You can start your visit to MINT Museum of Toys by taking the lift to the rooftop and making your way down via the stairs.
The rooftop top has a small gallery of vintage signs from the 1800s, set beside an open air bar space. The enamel advertising signs feature some brands that would still be recognisable to modern visitors such as Cadbury’s and Nestlé.
The other signs on display include Bear’s Brand Swiss Milk, Bradbury Cycles and signs from alehouses. An information panel provides more details about each of them.
Once you are done, you can make your way down to the collections below. We recommend taking the stairs between floors as the stairwells also contain displays of toys.
Outerspace
On the floor below the rooftop is the Outerspace collection. The toys here capture the imagination of children of the possibilities of space and technology.
Long before today’s talk of AI, drone and bots, toy makers were already dreaming up images of the cosmos and imagining a world of robots. This was further heightened by the space race of the 1950s and 1960s.
Amongst the toys to look out for at the Outerspace collection at MINT Museum of Toys is the Hook Robot made by Waco Toys, a rare toy that is friction-powered.
You will also find a collection of blasters, evoking memories of the Buck Rogers TV show that ran till the late 1960s.
Characters
The Characters collection presents some well-known comic and animation characters but in some of their earliest forms.
Meet a Mickey Mouse with four fingers and a wide grin with teeth. This Mickey Mouse Jazzer was produced by Dean’s Rag Book Company in the 1930s. It could be mounted to a gramophone and would “dance” along to the record.
Other characters represented in this collection include Looney Tunes, The Flintstones, Yogi Bear, Felix the Cat and Batman.
Childhood Favourites
It is not just the big-name movie character toys that get an airing at the MINT Museum of Toys. At the Childhood Favourite collection, there are vintage toys from all around the world.
Amongst the highlights on this floor is a Steiff Teddy Bear made in Germany around 1903. It is valued at at GBP 20,000 or S$34,000 at today’s prices.
Blink and you walk past it is the Smallest Doll in the World. Dating back to the 1930s, you can look through a magnifying glass to get a closer look at it.
There is also a collection of vintage Barbie dolls including one wearing the vintage black and white swimsuit. These ponytail Barbie dolls wearing the famous zebra striped suit were the first ever made and were sold between 1959 to 1961.
There is also a play space with supersized versions of games like Chinese chess.
Collectables
The last level at MINT Museum of Toys is simply titled Collectables. It contains a variety of vintage toys that can almost be viewed as historical artefacts.
One of the fascinating toys in the Collectables section is simply known as Chinese Stairs. It features a pair of figures holding poles that can shuffle their way down a flight of stairs.
What makes it especially fascinating is that it is powered by mercury. The poles are filled with the liquid metal, moving the toy downwards by gravity as it swishes back and forth. It is hard to imagine such a toy being made today.
Another section of the Collectables section has toys that reflect historical events, from the Nazi era in the 1940s to the JFK assassination and more.
The Little Prince at the MINT Museum of Toys
The MINT Museum of Toys’ display of an exclusive assortment of The Little Prince collectibles range from figurines to a mohair doll and other novelties. These unique items, not available for sale, are showcased for public appreciation and photo opportunities.
Photowalls of The Little Prince thematic backdrops at the ground floors and various levels, and the book’s photo props at the Childhood Favourites gallery allow fans to immerse themselves in his world through snapshots.
Visitors are invited to learn of The Little Prince’s adventures across planets and journey with him to earth and MMOT as he encounters its toy collection and selected toys coming alive, including The Smallest Doll In the World, as well as his reflections and bout his memories about his home planet Asteroid B-612.
Virtual Interactivity
With the MINT Museum of Toys’ drive toward virtual interactivity since 2022 and creative learning journey thrusts, every featured exhibition at the stairwell has an AR touchpoint on the wall with a AR toy such as Winnie the Pooh or Astro Boy Rocket sharing interesting titbits, when scanned.
The wonder of the MINT Museum of Toys is the thought behind its curation.
Ranging from toys that evoke childhood memories, document events in history and give us an insight into our culture and heritage to rare and valuable vintage toys, the galleries also showcased toys that encourage creative play and puppets that cultivate social skills through storytelling and role-playing.
Familiar character toys from Cartoon Animations, classic Disney and Comic Books from historical periods, space toys such as spaceships, rockets, aliens and robots that paralleled the development of the Space Race during the era of the Cold War from the 1930s to 1960s and human fascination with space travel and voyages to strange new worlds.
Visiting The MINT Museum of Toys
It may be tempting to rush through the museum, moving from glass cabinet to glass cabinet, but to really appreciate it, you may wish to slow down and read through the accompanying description.
Where: 26 Seah St, Singapore 188382
How much:
Adult – $30/entry
Children – (6 to 12 years old): $20/entry.
Website: MINT Museum of Toys
Expected time spent: 1 ½ to 2 hours.
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