By Allen Voivod
The Gold State Coach is a quintessential piece of British royal history. Built in 1762, it’s been used at every coronation since King George IV’s ceremony in 1821. Most recently, it appeared during Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee pageant. On May 6, 2023, it will carry her son, King Charles III, from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey for his own coronation.
In honor of King Charles III and the Queen Consort, Matchbox Collectors is proud to create this regal replica of the Gold State Coach. At nearly 25 centimeters long, this made-to-order item includes the coach and eight horses – which is how many horses are needed to pull the actual coach, because it weighs four metric tons (more than 8,800 pounds).
Also in real life, the horses are postillion-ridden, meaning that only the left-side horses have riders, with each rider controlling a left-right pairing. It’s the same with our tribute, and all of these items – the carriage body, horses, and riders – are made of die-cast metal.
The horses are connected to the carriage with a gold-colored harness, and the interior seating is designed to resemble the velvet and satin upholstery of the original. Figurines of the King and the Queen Consort sit inside, ready for a ride on the coach’s real working wheels. In fact, it’s a smoother ride than the 1:1 version, which Queen Victoria famously said had a “distressing oscillation,” and King William IV once said was like “tossing in a rough sea.”
Our collectible also pays tribute to another auspicious occasion. This year is the 70th anniversary of Matchbox vehicles landing on British store shelves. They were a hit from the start, and one of the most popular inaugural castings was a version of the Gold State Coach. That one was also created in honor of a coronation – for Queen Elizabeth II, in 1953. You could rightly say that our new edition is arriving at a perfectly timed, full-circle moment.
PACKAGING
- Packaged in an oversized acrylic case, with a window box inside a sturdy outer box
AVAILABILITY
- Available to anyone: Made-to-order purchases will be accepted from April 25, 2023 at 5 PM PT until May 22, 2023 at 9 PM PT
PRICING AND PURCHASE LIMITS
- Priced at $60.00 plus shipping and processing each; extra charges may apply for express shipping or special handling (customers shipping to Canada may be required to pay additional shipping charges or taxes)
- We offer international shipping – please see shipping costs and details here (international shipping availability subject to change)
- No purchase limits
- Refunds only, no exchanges
Items and dates subject to change. Production items may vary from the photos shown. Mattel reserves the right to modify the color, decorations, scale, body, and wheel type. Product subject to availability. Items placed in your shopping cart are not guaranteed to be available for purchase until you have completed checkout and received an order number via confirmation page or email.
Important Terms and Conditions Applicable to Purchase of Made-to-Order Item:
Orders for the made-to-order item will be taken from April 25, 2023 at 5 PM PT until May 22, 2023 at 9 PM PT (the “sale window”), with no purchase limits. Mattel may close the sale window early at its sole discretion. A charge will be placed on your payment account and will be processed on the date you place your order. You may cancel your order during the sale window by contacting Customer Service . After the sale window ends, all orders are final.
The made-to-order item’s expected ship date will be displayed on the item’s product page in our online shop, and may be up to a year from your order date. You will be notified before your order ships, and provided with instructions if you need to update your shipping address. If the expected shipping date changes, and the revised date is more than 30 days after the original expected shipment date, you’ll be notified of the new expected shipping date and have the opportunity to request a refund if desired.
-
3
-
1
-
1
Recommended Comments
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.