le Motocycliste Enragé

A circus act as a toy.

Georges Flersheim purchased the Fernand Martin factory in 1912 and he acquired with the company all Martin’s patents.
George Flersheim patented this toy in 1912.

This performance of a circus act was produced in 1912 and it get the product number 228.
The original patent with number 444652 was applied on 05 June 1912, granted on 13 August 1912 and published on 23 October 1912 under the name “Nouveau jouet monocycle” , it became the trade name: Le Motocycliste Enragé

This very rare toy auctioned on November 12, 2016 at the French auction house Galerie De Chartres together with the super rare box.

The motorcycle starts to move after winding and therefore he wants to drive up in the ring but due to the weight of the motor the ring moves forward.
The movement is clearly visible on the patent drawing number: Fig.5.
The motorcycle itself was also used by George Flersheim not much later in 1912 with the name “Le Motocycliste” and thisone gets the number 231.
Victor Bonnet produced the same “Le Motocycliste” from 1919 with the same number 231.
The Victor Bonnet version has a few differences; closed wheels, a closed back and a mechanism with the well-known Victor Bonnet key.