Chalicotherium (Bullyland)
The Prehistoric World by Bullyland produced many remarkable pieces, not only classics like the woolly rhino or the mammoth, but truly unique choices like Andrewsarchus, Gompotherium, Deinotherium and Chalicotherium. Most of them were rapidly retired, so some fetch outrageous prices on Ebay.
The choice is not gratuitous, as Bullyland sometimes produces animals found specifically in Germany (good for them!); that is the case of the type species, C. goldfussi, discovered almost two hundred years ago (although it’s been found in other parts of Europe and Asia). Despite its strange yet charming appearance, the now extinct family of the Chalicotheriidae (that lived from the Eocene all the way to the Late Pliocene) has remained almost unknown in popular culture, so the genus itself is quite obscure. Its description matches that of a chimaera: the gentle head of a horse, the body of a gorilla, a short stubb-like tail, a pair of extremely large forelimbs and big claws. Chalicotheriidae were odd-toed ungulates (that means that the hooves are irregular, in this case, they had 3 toes) and they probably had to walk on all fours (due to the masiveness of the arms) and to support their weight on their knuckles (no wonder it’s always portrayed like that).
The colouring is not something you would call amazing (in my opinion that’s not what Bullyland does best) it’s kind of pale bony yellow with some dark highlights (I’d have added some different paint on the claws and the ears). The sculpt is very respectable, simple pose but great detail (I particularly liked the fur, the long fingers on the forelimbs and the barely visible ribcage). The head is finely sculpted, although the ears seem roundish (classic Bullyland feature); the expression is calm, as if it were about to chew something (I mean, just look at that slightly crooked mouth! He’s sure up to something!) It’s not very big (barely 14cm from head to tail) but it belongs to that unusual kind of figures that we love around here.
Make sure to visit our young forum!
