“60 Years of LEGO” has been the dominant theme in all celebrations tied to LEGO this 2018. Commemorative sets have been released to mark the occasion, and parties in the company’s parks in Billund and everywhere in the world. But all these gestures apparently only honor the LEGO of now.
This milestone anniversary looks back to 1958 when the patent was filed for the familiar plastic interlocking brick design. But when then the company that became LEGO was started in Billund, Denmark by Ole Kirk Christiansen even further back in 1932, its toy products were initially made out of wood.
That goes beyond the six decades of the brick that LEGO is commemorating, but a LEGO toy is a LEGO toy. Website JK Brickworks has decided to pay tribute to the earliest days of the brand by using modern LEGO bricks to reconstruct a design by Ole Kirk’s original workshop.
As detailed in the video, JK Brickworks founder Jason Allemann used about 377 various LEGO pieces to create a wooden duck pull-toy. When it rolls along on its wheels, the beak on the duck figure opens and closes. It’s a touching tribute to the LEGO founder mixed with the 60 Years celebration.
Further details on this marvelous MOC can be found in the JK Brickworks website. It also includes a list of specific building parts and a PDF of building instructions, in case any LEGO builder would like to replicate it. A real wooden duck pull-toy is on display at LEGO HQ, Billund, where Jason saw it.