Space and Physics
PUBLISHED
Many of us remember growing up with questionable toys that would not make it onto the shelves today – whether they would not be deemed appropriate for kids today or contained potentially harmful materials that made them a health risk. Now, a vintage toy set that was once listed as one of the "most dangerous toys of all time" is up for sale – though only one is up for grabs to eager auction-goers.
The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content.The Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Laboratory was a toy lab set produced in 1950 and 1951 that allowed kids to create and watch nuclear and chemical reactions in their own homes. The play set, created by Alfred Carlton Gilbert, was designed to be fun and educational for kids while also helping to enhance the public’s overall understanding of atomic energy and the Atomic Age.
The toy lab, housed in a red reed suitcase, contained four samples of uranium ores: autunite, torbernite, uraninite, and carnotite. It also came with an electroscope for measuring radiation levels, a spinthariscope for visualizing radioactive decay on a screen, and a cloud chamber that offers the viewer evidence of alpha particles as they move through a cloud of vapor.
The owner of this set would have access to the original “Gilbert Atomic Energy Manual”, and a “Prospecting for Uranium” guide that was published by the US Atomic Energy Commission and US Geological Survey. It also contains a copy of Dagwood Splits the Atom, a comic that explains atomic structure and how to create a nuclear chain reaction (in principle, not in practice).
Gilbert was something of a toy celebrity in the first part of the 20th century. He was once celebrated as “the man who saved Christmas” when he convinced the US Council of National Defence not to ban the purchasing of toys when so many other items had been sacrificed in wartime. Gilbert championed toys that combined education with fun, and hoped sets like his Atomic Energy Laboratory would inspire the scientists of the future.
However, by the 1950s, Gilbert appeared to be increasingly out of touch with what post-war children wanted. In the end, fewer than 5,000 sets of the lab were sold between 1950 and 1951, after which they were discontinued.
The kit on sale now even has a note written by Gilbert stating “We regret exceedingly to advise you that we have discontinued manufacturing this Laboratory and it was very difficult to obtain some of the materials and also due to Government Restrictions.”
In 2006, Radar Magazine identified the lab set as one of “the 10 most dangerous toys of all time”, because of the radioactive materials it contained. However, in 2020, the Journal IEEE Spectrum analyzed the toy and suggested that it was about as risky as UV exposure from spending a day in the sun – that is, as long as the materials stayed in their containers.
The auction is open until December 12, 2024, and, at the time of publishing, the lab has a bidding price of $12,000
