Despite a lifelong fascination with archaeology and ancient history — and even a trip through Sinai, Cairo, and Karnak at age 19 — I must admit that Egyptology has never been particularly interesting to me, obsessed as its public portrayal is with glittering treasures and kingship. Nevertheless, I’m reading the excellent The Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt by Toby Wilkinson right now, in which I find the chaotic Intermediate periods especially fascinating. Koen Zwanenburg is also fascinated with ancient history, and has built this amazing life-sized version of the boy king Tutankhamun’s mask from 16,000 LEGO bricks. The son of the radical Akhenaten, Tutankhamun reigned briefly (ca. 1334 – 1325 BCE) at the end of the 18th Dynasty, and his tomb likely only survived ancient looting because of its modesty, to be discovered by Howard Carter in 1922. Koen’s LEGO version is 54 cm tall, 39 cm wide, and 49...

I love racing. Not that I do it myself, but there is something enthralling about watching vehicles (or even just persons or animals) moving at high speeds in a winner-take-all contest. From track meets to Formula 1, NASCAR to podracing, I love watching races (n.b. I don’t actually watch car races, typically, but scenes in movies, like Cars, get me excited). And what goes faster than a car? A spaceship, of course! This small LEGO craft by Tim Goddard looks highly maneuverable, barely fitting a minifigure so that it can squeeze into the small gates that mark the course. The transparent 4×4 dish perfectly complements the windscreen to form a lovely canopy, and the color blocking is superb. Perhaps even better than the raceship is the triangular teal gate, with just the right amount of greebling to balance the smooth curves. And the stickers enhance it all the more. Gentlemen, start...

The LEGO Crocodile Locomotive (10277) has been out for a few days now and LEGO has since released the designer video for the set. LEGO designer Pierre Normandin talks about some of the details of the train which is based on the Swiss Federal Railways train. Currently the Crocodile Locomotive is temporarily out of stock and we’re not sure when it will be coming back due to the factory that supplies to North America is still shut down. Stock is split between regions to help make up for it. The post LEGO Crocodile Locomotive (10277) Designer Video appeared first on The Brick Fan. Original linkOriginal author: Allen "Tormentalous" Tran

It’s a new month and that means there are a new pair of double VIP point sets that you can get on LEGO Shop@Home. First is the LEGO Classic Bricks Bricks Plates (11717). It is priced at $69.99 and you can get 910 points for it. The other set is the LEGO Classic Large Creative Box (10698) which retails for $59.99 and you can get 780 points for it. The sets aren’t too interesting but if you’re looking for straight up bricks and various elements in a number of colors, these are the way to go. The post LEGO July 2020 Double VIP Point Sets appeared first on The Brick Fan. Original linkOriginal author: Allen "Tormentalous" Tran

Yesterday, we talked about a new LEGO Monkie Kid BrickHeadz coming out soon and it looks like there are more sets for the main theme as well. Over on LEGO Shop@Home Malaysia, there are some product listings for three more upcoming sets. Although there are no images of the sets yet, there are descriptions as well as piece counts. Sandy’s Speedboat (80014) – 394 pieces Young heroes can play out exciting rescue missions with this LEGO® Monkie Kid playset (80014), featuring Sandy’s Speedboat and the Spider Queen’s mech and Silken Web Cave. An awesome gift for kids, the models have lots of cool details such as the boat’s rapid shooter and cat compartment, and the cave’s web trap. There are 3 minifigures, plus Sandy, Mo the cat and spider figures, plus cool weapons such as Sandy’s Crescent Staff and the Spider Queen’s staff for role-play battles. Digital instructionsThis collectible LEGO gift...