ROBOT LILLIPUT - CK KURAMOCHI - JAPAN

Tin windup robot. Advances with shuffling motion via spikes under his feet that alternately move. (Pin feet) Free swinging arms have claw hands. The lower part of each arm is a separate unit shoved in to the upper arm. This fragile connection means that the lower arm is frequently missing. Lilliput is believed to be the first mass produced robot. The box carries the two logos KT and CK. KT is the manufacturer and CK probably the distributor.

There are two distinct versions of the robot: the difference is that the (presumably first) has a dial that is mounted in a hole in the chest with small tabs; the (later) version has a clockface stamped into the metal with titho clockface. It is assumed that the simpler version is the later; the manufacturer had presumably found a way of stamping the clock depression that would not damage the litho dial.

The design is very similar to the Atomic Robot Man (which has been firmly dated to at least 1949 and self-evidently later than 1945). The Lilliput, however, is a pre-war robot and as such is the first.

CK (Kuramochi Shoten) was the largest supplier of made in Japan toys prior to WWII. KT, Kuramochi Toys, is a trade mark that is invariably seen on pre WWII toys, usually in conjuction with another trademark such as Masudaya.

In the Nurnberg museum is a Lilliput bearing a trade sample import label dated 2/7/1937. The Liliput had come out the Schuco Toy Company archive. Shuco had ordered this Robot in 1937 for "Benchmarking".

A catalogue with an example of the Lilliput robot and carrying the date 1938 (Showa 13, the 13th year of the Emperor's reign) has now been identified confirming the pre-war date.