403 - GASELAN Fürstenwalde Electric Steam Engine, GDR Model with Pressure Gauge, 1950s/1960s

GASELAN Fürstenwalde Electric Steam Engine, GDR Model with Pressure Gauge, 1950s/1960s Metal, blue-painted base plate, the boiler house light blue. Electrically heated model steam engine with horizontal boiler in a light finish, pressure gauge, safety valve, steam whistle and chrome-plated fittings, at the side a bolted sight glass. The boiler platform with an encircling wire railing and applied sheet metal staircase. On the engine platform the horizontal steam engine with cylinder, crosshead guide and flywheel with red spokes and grey rim, together with the steam line to the boiler. On the boiler house the yellow maker's plate with the company emblem 'GASELAN' and the inscription 'VEB CHEMIE- UND TANKANLAGENBAU FÜRSTENWALDE - DEUTSCHE DEMOKRATISCHE REPUBLIK'. Electric heating via a mains cable with switch and plug. In the base the embossed number 10427. Played with, would need cleaning. 20x30x30 cm. The VEB Chemie- und Tankanlagenbau Fürstenwalde marketed its products under the brand name GASELAN and was one of the few manufacturers producing model steam engines in series in the GDR. The machines were used not only as toys but also as demonstration models for polytechnic teaching; the electric heating replaced solid fuel and made operation in schools and homes possible. Surviving examples with a legible maker's plate are today a sought-after collecting field of GDR technical history.