Vintage Bone Age Toys: Tritops with Tund
Tritops is a skeletal representation of a Triceratops, known for its three distinct facial horns and robust frill. The set includes spring-loaded missile horns, adding an interactive element to the toy.
Bone Age Vintage Toys & Merch
The Bone Age toy line was a unique and imaginative series released by Kenner in 1987. Unlike traditional dinosaur toys, Bone Age blended prehistoric themes with modular, creative play. The line revolved around skeletal dinosaur figures and cavemen tribes, each with their own stories and accessories. If you’re into dinosaurs, modular toys, or just miss that 1980s creativity, Bone Age is a toy line worth revisiting! So, let’s explore the toy line and where to get the different dinosaurs and their human counterparts second-hand today.
What Made Bone Age Special?
The dinosaurs weren’t just static models—they were skeletons you could take apart and reconfigure. Want to turn your raptor into a battle chariot? Done. Need your T-Rex to double as a catapult? Easy. The whole line encouraged kids to be inventive and build their own prehistoric contraptions. Each dinosaur came with a caveman figure. These weren’t generic side characters—they belonged to specific clans, like the Ice Clan or the Stone Clan, each with their own tribal identity and role in the Bone Age universe. The sets also included cool extras like weapons, boulders, or launching mechanisms.
All The Bone Age Sets and Where to Get Them Today
Bone Age was set in a world where cavemen and dinosaurs coexisted (don’t worry about the science here; it’s all about fun). The idea was to create a fusion of prehistoric life and early technology, where bones were used for vehicles, weapons, and even shelters. Some standout toys from the line included Ptero with Brog (a skeletal pteranodon that could transform into a land skimmer), Dynacus with Zur (a raptor-style dinosaur with modular combat features) and Codus with Thog (a crocodilian beast that could be turned into a scout copter).
Vintage Bone Age Toys: T-Rex with Crag
The T-Rex is crafted as a skeletal representation of the formidable Tyrannosaurus rex, renowned for its massive size and predatory nature. The set includes a rock bomb-throwing arm.
Vintage Bone Age Toys: Stegus with Org
Stegus is crafted as a skeletal representation of a Stegosaurus, a dinosaur recognized for its distinctive back plates and spiked tail. The set includes working shooting bony plates.
Vintage Bone Age Toys: Ptero with Brog
Ptero is designed as a skeletal Pteranodon, the iconic flying reptile from the age of dinosaurs. The set includes boulder bombs as accessories. The bones can be reassembled into various configurations, such as an attack copter or a sleek land skimmer.
Vintage Bone Age Toys: Plesior with Molt
Plesior is crafted as a skeletal representation of a Plesiosaurus, a marine reptile characterized by its long neck and flippers. The set includes snapping capture fins. Molt is a member of the Lava Clan.
Vintage Bone Age Toys: Dynacus with Zur
“Dynacus with Zur,” represents a skeletal Deinonychus accompanied by the caveman figure Zur of the Ice Clan. The set includes a launching tail mechanism, adding an interactive element to the toy.
Vintage Bone Age Toys: Deitron with Brac
Deitron is crafted as a skeletal representation of a Dimetrodon, a prehistoric synapsid known for its distinctive sail-like fin. The set includes a shooting fin. Brac is a member of the Stone Clan.
Vintage Bone Age Toys: Codus with Thog
Codus is crafted as a skeletal representation of Deinosuchus, a prehistoric crocodilian. The set includes snapping jaws. Thog is depicted as a member of the Stone Clan, equipped to ride Codus.
Vintage Bone Age Toys: Brontus with Volc
Brontus is crafted as a skeletal representation of a Brontosaurus, a massive sauropod dinosaur known for its long neck and tail. Volc is the chief of the Lava Clan.
Vintage Bone Age Toys: Anklor With Tuk
Anklor is crafted as a skeletal representation of an Ankylosaurus, a dinosaur renowned for its armored body and clubbed tail. The set includes launching rock bombs.
Why Bone Age Fizzled Out
Despite its creativity, Bone Age was short-lived, disappearing from shelves by 1988. It faced stiff competition from more mainstream toy lines like Transformers and G.I. Joe, and its niche appeal made it a harder sell for some kids.
Today, Bone Age is remembered fondly by collectors and fans of retro toys. The sets are sought after on the secondary market, especially if they’re complete or still in the box. Bone Age toys were a snapshot of a time when toy companies took bold risks and embraced wild, out-of-the-box ideas.