Monday, May 31, 2010

The Pretty Penny Wishing Well Box

Hello everyone, I'm baaaaaaack! I'm sure anyone who ever checks this blog thinks I forgot about it a long time ago, but that is not the case. I have a whole bunch of things that I've been meaning to write about, but first I had to take pictures of some of my PP sets and that's what the hold up was. But now I've taken the pictures and we're ready to go.

On to my post for the day...

Back before the new year began (yes, that was a while ago) I was fortunate enough to acquire a new in the box Pretty Penny Wishing Well. I was particularly anxious to get this set since it is one of the most rare PP sets, so rare in fact that the listing for it on the very thorough website ThisOldToy.com is labeled as "Missing Information or Given Details Have Not Been Confirmed". Well, folks, I'm here to fill in the information and confirm all the details.

In this first post, I'll just be covering information on the box. Here is a pic of the box front:



The front of the box says "Fisher-Price", "Pretty Penny Wishing Well", "Ages 5 and up" and "This package contains small parts which are not intended for children under 3 years."

Here is the top flap of the box:



It says "Precious Places Pretty Penny Wishing Well", "Bring Michelle and the Wishing Well to life with your Precious Key." Notice also that it is labeled as 5186 (its set number) as well as 5185 ASST. which means it was part of the Outdoor Scene Assortment. The price tag on my box indicates that it was originally priced at $6.99, although I suppose the price may have varied some between stores/regions of the country. You can't tell this from the picture, but on the top of the box it says "Welcome to Precious Places, a special collectible village where you control the fun with your own Precious Key."

Here is the bottom of the box:



It says "Proof of Purchase 5186 Pretty Penny Wishing Well", "1988 Fisher-Price, Division of The Quaker Oats Company, East Aurora, NY 14052. Figure made in China. All other components made in Macao. Product specifications subject to change without notice. Package printed in Hong Kong." and finally "Fisher-Price products are made to the company's traditionally high standards of quality, comply to all applicable government safety regulations and conform to the Safety Requirements of ASTM F963."

Sorry, I know that wasn't very interesting. The back of the box is a tad more exciting:



It says "Fisher Price 5186 5185 ASST.", "Precious Places" and then "Welcome to Precious Places, a special collectible village where you control the fun with your own Precious Key. Use your Precious Key to walk Michelle to the Pretty Penny Wishing Well. Can you help her make a wish? Includes Precious Key, Michelle, wishing well scene, arbor, watering can, bucket and ladle."

The labels on the photos say (from top to bottom): "Precious Key moves Michelle around the wishing well." "Includes watering can, bucket and ladle." and "Precious Places Village - Collect all the Precious Places and create your own special village."

The sides of the box don't have any text or photos on them.

Okay, so I know this isn't the most thrilling post of all time, but since the Pretty Penny Wishing Well is such a rare set, I wanted to give all of you collectors out there very complete information. In the next few weeks I'll be writing several Pretty Penny Wishing Well posts in which I will cover what was inside the box (including a little surprise I found) as well as the mistake in the ThisOldToy.com parts list for the set (yes, there is one). Stay tuned for more!