Africa has some of the greatest ranges of mammals in the world, from the massive African elephant to the smaller naked mole rat. The most common are the antelopes, with small species like the dik-dik to the massive eland. This review will look at one of these great ungulates, the oryx. Specifically, the gemsbok, or South African oryx (Oryx gazella), the largest of the oryx, that strides the Kalahari plains. Here we see the Schleich incarnation, released in 2016.
While their dinosaur models can be very hit or miss, Schleich’s animal models tend to be pretty fantastic, and this is no exception. The colour scheme is pretty impressive and very accurate to the animal. Some may see it as a little pale, but not compared to some specimens of the gemsbok you may see.
The pose is quite simple, looking around its territory, maybe having spotted something in the distance. Nice enough. It’s a decent size, measuring 4.2 inches long and 4.6 inches high, meaning it should fit in well with other models in the line. The texture is perfect for portraying the shorter hairs of the real animal.
This is a superb figure, we worth picking up. It can still be found quite easily, online or in stores. Pick it up if you find it, but try not to cram it in with others, or you may find the antlers bending out of place.
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I have this in my collection. I originally had the Papo model (mainly because it was in a lot I bought on eBay). I prefer the Papo sculpt and pose, but it was missing the black spots on the front of the legs above the hooves. One could argue I could just paint them on, but I don’t like altering figures 🙂
This is perhaps my favorite toy version of this antelope, they did a good job on this one!
i prefer the schleich figure to the papo. Something about this model just looks right to me. One of Schleich’s better efforts.
btw Gemsbok don’t have antlers, they have horns. Antlers are bone and are shed. Horns grow throughout the animals lifetime, are keratin and never shed.