(Vol. 8, # 12)
Although this month's
building is a lighthouse, the Christmas wreath over the entrance inspired
me to save this Tim Fullam design for a December page. It shows that
1) any building can have a Christmas theme and 2) often Christmas is celebrated
in the most unusual places. On the builder's
page you will find pictures. Be sure to look; the building
is most unusual and impressive.
There were a few typos in last month's web site. (Corrected on the CD Archive version.) So now I will (try to) make myself clear. To the best of my knowledge, no one has ever selected the stones shown on the AF Grosse Burg packing plan (available to everyone on the CVA Archive packing plan CD) and tried to build the Grosse Burg with just those stones. I intend to do just that. The pictures (views) of the Grosse Burg (large castle) were drawn in 1889, but printed in 1909. And there is no indication when the layer plans were drawn or printed. That fact alone indicates to me that 1909 is the more likely date of the drawing of the layer plans.
Again, Leo Coffeng and I made another lazy trip (ein Bummel) in Germany. Dresden was the central destination, but we also visited AV Wolfgang Fichtner (Hartha, Sächsisches Burgen- und Heideland) and Rudolstadt. In Rudolstadt we visited Aeropharm, the successor to the Ankerpahrm factory in Rudolstadt. It may well happen that factories which trace their histories back to Richter and Anker become (again) the largest employers in Rudolstadt. I wish them well.
Please note that set # 20A is in stock. Set # 22A will be introduced at Nuremberg in February. You should expect it to be available here in the early summer. Pricing is shown on the new puzzles and sets page.
The last CVA meeting was on Saturday, October 25, 2003. The next meeting date will be on Saturday, April 24, 2004. I plan to be there. See the CVA page for details.
The Club of Anchor Friends (CVA) has published a Stone Catalog. I have no copies left. I do not know whether any more will be printed before the next update. The next update is scheduled for the end of 2004. There has been some discussion of putting the revised catalog on CD-ROM. That would mean 2005! The revision will be a major update -- some 100+ new pages and replacement 50 pages. Since the catalog uses a loose leaf format, you will need only the new and changed pages. The amount of detailed information in this catalog is very great, and the information keeps coming in. And it has become clear that e-mails with just numbers of stones in a set just will not do; Leo Coffeng must receive a photocopy or scan (in color if at all possible) of an actual packing plan.
The CVA is in the process of developing a "Stone Market". As it develops CVA members will be informed, which means not on this web site. The mechanics are complex, so there may be several revisions before its process becomes routine.
Richter's Anchor Stone Building Sets (Richters Anker Steinbaukasten) were the world's most popular construction toy from the early 1880s through W.W.I. These building stones were made in Rudolstadt, Thuringia, Germany, (and at the company's branches in Vienna, New York , but not St. Petersburg, Russia). Starting in 1880, Richter's Anchor building stones were covered by international patents and trademarks. AV Burkhard Schulz, Ellerau (bei Hamburg), has produced a wonderful video entitled Ankerstadt Rudolstadt. He gave a copy to the CVA Archive, and it is possible he might let you have a copy if you want one. Americans remember: 1) the video is in German and 2) the German TV system is not compatible with the USA TV system. Unfortunately, a DVD will not solve the incompatibility problem.
Today, there are many collectors and builders using Anchor Stone Building Sets. These collectors often participate in setting up Anchor displays at various exhibitions. A number of them are members of the international Club of Anchor Friends (Club van Ankervrienden), a Dutch club with members from the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Great Britain and the USA. The meetings of the Club of Anchor Friends is held in the Hotel Lapershoek in Hilversum.
Over 600 different Anchor Stone Building Sets were produced in a number of different series. In addition Richter offered other "stone" products such as puzzles and laying games. Information on these building set series is provided here, but one can e-mail me on other Richter products. People who would like to know more about a specific set, including value, or are only interested in additional general information are urged to contact George Hardy. All e-mail questions will be answered, to the extent of my knowledge.
Sets and puzzles are being produced again! The quality is high. I urge people interested in starting Anchor building, and those who want to provide their educational benefits to their children, to consider buying new puzzles and sets. Anchor Stone Building Sets are great presents, and the supplement sets make wonderful follow up gifts. These new sets recently won the 1997 Parents' Choice Gold Medal. In 1999, the Anchor sets won the National Parenting Publications Award. For an 1880 toy to win in 1997 and 1999 says a lot about the quality of these sets and Anchor in general. These sets are a perfect supplement to computers.
For those who are really interested in Anchor stones, I have written a book about them. (I just got tired of either looking up the same information again and again, or trusting my memory on specific details such as dates and names.) It is expensive, $50 (or 50 Euros, your choice), ppd, because I print it myself on my PC and color ink is expensive. The book undoubtedly contains far more information about Anchor stones and sets, the Richter company, etc. than you'll ever want to read. This book is a lot of work to print (I print about a dozen at a time, in either English or German, and it takes a week, full time.), so please don't think I am urging you to buy one. The book is also available on CD-ROM, which costs just $2.00. See below.
Web Page Notes: Most subpages do not change from month to month. The "builder's page" is revised every month. A few people have asked me to number the "issues" of the Anchor page. Well, they started in August, 1996, (with Vol. 1, # 8, to keep the number of the month the same as the issue's number). The number of this "issue" is shown at the top of this page. All web pages are found in the CD-ROM Archive. See below.
CD-ROM Archive: I can supply the CD-ROMs of the CVA's CD-Archive. More scans are being added all of the time, and the "holes" in the documentation are being filled. Of course, more scans means more CDs, and as scans are added some files are moved to other CD. As of today, there are eleven CD-ROMs in the Archive, plus, for CVA members only, 8 additional CD-ROMs of the old MLBs (including an overview CD-ROM) and 3 CD-ROMs of the AHN (including an overview CD-ROM). (Do not try to buy these MLB CD-ROMs unless you are a CVA member. I check the membership list!) All of the scans are JPG files. # 1 contains the GK-NF building and layer plans, excluding # 34, the Anchor book in PDF format in English, plus odd things like box covers, figures, insets, rulers, etc.; # 2 contains the DS and # 34 building and layer plans; # 3 contains all packing plans, the Anchor book in PDF format in German and the web site with index; # 4 contains the building and layer plans for the second series of GK-Br and Imperator, the VE series; # 5 contains the KK building and layer plans, plus Comet, Erste Folge, Eagle, Imperator (all metal) and mosaic plans; # 6 contains documentation including my book in both English and German and various magazines (like the Anker Zeitung) and magazine articles, plus information on other Anchor products (like Lebkuchen, medicines and mechanical music instruments) ; # 7 contains the building and layer plans for the series 100 (Neue Reihe), 200 (Modern [American] House Series), 300 (Landhaus [Country House] sets), 400 (Festungs- und Burgen-Baukasten [fortress and castle sets]), NS, Capital, Täfelchenlegen, games, VEB, LaVelle, Orion, KMBK (Art Model Building Sets), Eisenbrücken, A-B (American Bridges); # 8 contains the building and layer plans for the series GK-AF, the first series of GK-Br, Exhibition models, Richter (includes his will and other documents regarding his estate), Rudolstadt; # 9 Catalogs, Special Sets, pictures of the original factory (perhaps I will add pictures of the new factory, assuming permission is granted); # 10 Personal Designs, plus advertisements and Im (1st series), and # 11 an overview using PDF and other more modern PC programs and formats. Only the members of the Club of Anchor Friends are permitted to purchase the eight CD-ROMs containing all of the MLBs (up through Fall, 2001), including both the English and the German language translations and an overview CD. CDs of the AHN have been added to the Archive. The AHN needs two CDs, plus a third CD for the overview. If you want to buy one or more of these CD-ROMs, please send $2 (or euros, your choice) for the first CD-ROM and $1 each for the rest -- postage included, no matter where they are going. The Euro payments should be sent to the CVA in the usual way that you use. CDs are inexpensive, so I do not see a problem if, at this stage of the Archive, some CDs may become obsolete due to relocation of files.
The new Anchor factory in Rudolstadt, Germany has added many new designs to its web site (thanks to the help of Burkhardt Schulz). They can be easily downloaded, as they are PDF files.
Please note that this home page is revised monthly. Most of the graphics are JPEG, which improves quality and reduces file size. The URL name -- ankerstein.org -- indicates that this site is the official web site of the Club of Anchor Friends.
My e-mail address is georgeh@ankerstein.org. If I ever change the ISP for the web site -- www.ankerstein.org -- my old 'rlc' e-mail address will change, but my 'ankerstein' e-mail address is (more or less) permanent.
Many new graphics, and additional text, are uploaded once a month, as close to the first as possible. I do not change the full set of graphics, as most people never read beyond the first page. If you only have a little time, I urge you to take a look at the "builders" page. And please plan to drop by monthly to see the new pictures. In the restricted space of my home page, I can provide only a limited view of the wonderful world of Richter's Anchor stones.
Other web sites with Anchor pictures and
information:
new
Anchor factory in Rudolstadt, Germany, (auf Deutsch and in
English);
successor to the Ankerpahrm factory
in Rudolstadt, Germany, (in English);
the USA importer and
distributor;
Pagina Web en
Castellano, (en Español);
a German
retailer of Anchor sets, (auf Deutsch);
a German retailer
of Anchor sets who ships worldwide, (auf Deutsch);
a
Dutch retailer of Anchor sets;
the best retailer of construction
toys in America, includes Anchor sets, of course;
an English retailer of Anchor
sets;
an American retailer of Anchor
sets;
German
Museum in München, (auf Deutsch);
Stephen Wessel's
Anker page, (auf Deutsch);
information
on Gustav Lilienthal, (auf Deutsch);
Kunst-Auktionshaus
Martin Wendl, (auf Deutsch);
Construction
Toys;
Lego on Long
Island;
Architectural
Toys;
the web site of Rachel
Fulton, Associate Professor of Medieval History at the University of
Chicago;
the
puzzle web page
is a must for all puzzle collectors, although not much on Anchor puzzles.
If you feel that your web site should be included in this list, please let me know.
For the month of December, 2003.
Anker-Steinbaukasten, auf Deutsch.
Anker-Steenbouwdozen, in nederlands (und auf Deutsch).
Anchor Stone Building sets, in English. (You found it.)
"Anchor" and "Anker" are registered trademarks of the Rudolstädter Anker-Steinbaukasten-Fabrik GmbH & Co. KG.
Thank you for visiting the CVA "Anchor" web site.
or you can write to:
George Hardy
6 Deer Path Road
Lake Monticello, VA 22963
Tel. and Fax: (434) 589 8752
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No Java. No music. No moving icons. No garbage. Ever. Just Anchor.