This is another Triple Mountain / Identify Your Breyer crossover article!
Silver is a popular mold, and Black Beauty is the most popular horse story of all time, so it's no surprise that Breyer released a "portrait" of Black Beauty on the Silver mold. But what may surprise some folks is that they've done it twice!
The releases came nineteen years apart, with the QVC Special Run in 2001, and then the Breyer Web Exclusive in 2020. They can be hard to tell apart in photos, but the two releases can have very different values, so it's good to be able to correctly identify them. Once you see them side-by-side, their differences become clear.
Sure, they're both black horses with a right front sock and a roundish star. But looking more closely, we find that the QVC model (on the left, above) is true matte black, while the Web Exclusive release has a pearly pewter undercoat. Be careful, here, though - The QVC model can have highlights that show the raw plastic underneath, which in photos can look somewhat "silvery," but in general, they are darker and flatter than the Web Special.
There are easier ways to tell them apart in photos than their body color: Let's look at those markings. The QVC release came out right at the end of the stenciled markings era. Metal masks and clamps were used to cover areas that weren't supposed to get painted. These often gave the opportunity for overspray and "soft edges" to markings. The Web Special, on the other hand, was solidly into the masked markings era. Areas to be left white were covered in the factory equivalent of masking tape, resulting in crisp edges, and sometimes even slightly raised edges. Let's look at these markings up close:
Again, QVC is on the left and Web Exclusive is on the right. Even with the occasional masking slip, you'd recognize the difference anywhere now! Let's go further - Here are their faces:
Do you see the slightly "softer edges" on the QVC model on the left? That's stenciling. But there's one more way to tell them apart in a head shot: The QVC model has hand-painted, ivory-colored eye whites in front of the eye (muzzle side), while the Web Exclusive has masked eye whites behind the eye (ear side). That's a dead giveaway.
So next time you're looking to add to your Silver conga, check those Black Beauty listings for sale. You know you need one of each! (I did... The guy on the left has joined my personal herd.)
Happy collecting!
To identify any Breyer model you find, use: IdentifyYourBreyer.com