The Mummy
1:8 Scale Model Kit

Along with 1999's reinvented Mummy, the spirit of Aurora's legendary models also rises from the dead

	The Mummy 1:8 Scale Model Kit
	By Polar Lights
	MSRP: $26.99

Review by Sean Huxter

or those growing up a couple of decades ago, the name Aurora evokes fond memories of childhood model-making. Their catalogs from the 1960s and 1970s featured some of the most intriguing and well-known model kits of all time, from the Lost In Space B9 Robot to monsters like Dracula and the Wolfman. The company tooled models from fantasy, horror and science fiction sources, and was renowned for their variety, accuracy, availability and, above all, their fun.
In the 1990s, a company called Playing Mantis picked up the torch and began reissuing some of the more popular Aurora kits under the synonymous name Polar Lights, and since then their catalog has grown to impressive proportions. Once again you can purchase and build some of the most interesting and fun model kits of all time, from The Green Hornet's Black Beauty limousine to the Bates' house from Psycho. And that’s just the beginning of their impressive lineup.
In 1999, the Universal Pictures classic The Mummy was remade with Arnold Vosloo reprising Boris Karloff’s 1932 role of Imhotep, or the Mummy. Merchandise followed, of course. Taking advantage of the popularity of the movie, Polar Lights has released a styrene plastic model kit of Vosloo's Mummy rising from his sarcophagus, making for a frightening diorama which includes a base, an aged, battered sarcophagus, an amphora, a name plate and the Mummy itself, stepping threateningly from his tomb.
The model kit is molded in 1:8 scale, made up of just over 40 pieces, and comes with simple but helpful instructions, and a paint scheme that explains why the pieces should be colored as they suggest. For example, "This guy is just back from the dead! Use a variety of deep reds and browns for the decayed flesh."

A mummy that isn't kept under wraps

The Mummy is a Polar Lights original release, rather than a reissue of an older model. It is designed to resemble Vosloo's Imhotep of the 1999 film, rather than Karloff’s 1932 version. While the stereotypical image of a mummy is of a man completely wrapped in dusty cloth bandages, this mummy resembles a strip-draped zombie, showing plenty of decaying flesh, and not so much wrapping. There seems to be something more elegant about the Karloff-style mummy than this one, and this is perhaps this kit’s major detracting point.
This is a fairly simple kit, and is intended to be assembled by modelers 8 and up. The pieces fit together very cleanly, and provide amply large posts and holes for gluing. Using standard techniques, this model goes together quickly, and is detailed enough to be fun to paint. Many kits require detailed painting before putting the pieces together, but with this kit, painting can be done either before or after construction. Either way, some work should be done post-construction, to touch up joins and seams.
While the mummy itself may not be the image most people imagine when they think of undead pharaohs come to life, the sarcophagus itself is a treat, and quite adequately resembles a coffin that could be found in the sealed tomb of a pyramid. The coffin is rather complexly modeled, using a total of 11 pieces to create an inner section and an outer section, joined by a rim that gives the illusion of quite a thick coffin wall. The lid is beautiful, but does not fit over the coffin to make for a good closure. But as it is intended to be displayed with the lid fallen to the ground, this is a minor issue.
Despite the mummy’s zombie-like appearance, this kit still brings hobbyists some joy.

Polar Lights has done some stellar work in recent years. It is entirely possible they will succeed in filling the void left when the mighty Aurora faltered. -- Sean

Back to the top.

Home

The Mummy 1:8 Scale Model Kit

A mummy that isn't kept under wraps

The Mummy
1:8 Scale Model Kit

`A mummy that isn't kept under wraps`