September 27, 2023
Holiday

Bricks Of Christmas Past – Day 11

by Frank R

A Look at LEGO® Christmas Sets From Past to Present

Welcome back to the 12 Bricks of Christmas Past! This is my countdown of traditional Christmas subjects done over the years in LEGO® form. Seasonal LEGO® sets are always a huge hit over the holidays. So for the next 12 days – the traditional Christmas amount – I’m going to look at a particular subject and see the offerings past to present. There’s some fun stuff to explore so check back each day 😉 Click below for previous articles and read on for today’s topic!

It’s the penultimate day of the Bricks of Christmas Past. Now that the reindeer have made their appearance, it’s time to see what they’re pulling through the sky. That of course, being Santa’s sleigh. This great toy transportation system is the next best thing to Santa himself. All kids know that the sleigh holds all the goods! LEGO® built sleighs have been around for a bit and like all other items on my lists, they’ve evolved pretty well over the years. Let’s take a ride around the world and check them out.

Santa and Sleigh / Promotional Item / 1977 / #264 / 68 pcs

This is the oldest set that I could find. It’s possibly a UK exclusive set. Details are a little scarce, but it gets the point across in traditional blocky style. Printed faces have come a long way since the early days. But that old school ‘generic’ smile is pretty nostalgic.

Santa with Reindeer and Sleigh / Seasonal / 1989 / #1628 / 63 pcs

This next set is quite similar to the previous one in design and availability, just in North America instead. The change of sleigh colours is interesting to note. Red is the defacto colour of course, so the prior blue does seem out of place. Interesting the reindeer are white. My guess for this is just parts availability in fewer colours.

Santa Claus and Sleigh / Seasonal Polybag / 1995 / #1807 / 17 pcs / 1 Minifig

Our first polybag includes one of our first Santa minifigures and a very simple sled with presents. Poor Santa is doing much more of the heavy lifting thanks to his backpack.

Santa’s Sleigh / Seasonal Polybag / 2013 / #40059 / 77 pcs / 2 Minifigs

Our next polybag upgrades the previous set with better details, more pieces, a reindeer and an extra minifigure. The reindeer is understandably brown now and the sleigh gets a seasonal colour palette.

Santa’s Workshop / Creator / 2014 / #10245 / 883 pcs / 6 Minifigs

This Winter Village set creates Santa’s workshop at the North Pole. The sleigh build is pretty substantial and comes with 4 brick-built reindeer as well. The reindeer look great and the sleigh has some nice elements that carry over into future sets. We mentioned this set on Day 1 but focused on the elf minifigures. It’s a great set and each component is really well done.

Sleigh the day away

Today’s Bricks of Christmas Past was a shorter one. But without that sleigh, Santa would have a heck of a time delivering all those presents. It’s a very classic image. Modern modes of transportation like ‘Santa’s Jeep Cherokee’ or ‘Santa’s Steamship’ don’t have quite as romantic a ring to them. Tomorrow is our final day and the arrival of the big guy himself. Thanks for reading along thus far. Now what do you think? Aside from a sleigh, what’s a great way for Santa to get around? What’s your favourite version of Santa’s sleigh? Please comment below and on our social channels to let me know. And as always, keep on brickin’. 🧱

-Frank

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