Back in 1998, LEGO (or as we casually refer to them, Legos) was one of the original toys to be inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame, and there are good reasons why. In a way, Legos can be seen as the iconic "building blocks" of so many people's childhoods all over the world. Even if you never loved Legos, you definitely know what they are (and you probably appreciate its role in keeping your brother out of your hair for hours). And Legos aren't just for kids. Plenty of adults have stayed fond of the ubiquitous bricks (or, like us, have recently rediscovered that fondness via the awesome new Lego Movie, which is definitely made for grown-ups). Whichever the case is, take a quick break from your LEGO set, and read these 11 totally awesome facts about LEGO. 1. LEGO is 82 years old. The LEGO Group was founded in 1932 in Denmark. It went from a small carpenter's workshop to the world's third largest manufacturer of toys. A vintage LEGO set from 1985: 2. A LEGO brick from 1958 would still interlock with a LEGO brick made today.
LEGO bricks are part of a "universal system," so that regardless of the year it was made and the set it belongs to, each piece is compatible with existing pieces. 3. The name has a very special meaning. The LEGO name was created by using the first two letters of the Danish words "Leg" and "Godt," meaning "play well." Here's Escher's "Relativity" recreated in Lego: 4. You can combine six of the eight-studded LEGO bricks in 915,103,765 ways. Here's a challenge for your brain: Try to figure out the 24 different ways two LEGO bricks with eight studs can be combined. Here's a woman wearing a dress made out of LEGOs: 5. The nation of minifigures would hold the record for the world's largest population (if they were humans, of course). The first minifigure was created in 1978, and since then, four billion have been made. Here are Prince William, Duchess Kate and Baby George in LEGO form: 6. Someone built a real house made entirely of LEGO.
In 2009, a man named James May in Surrey, Great Britain, constructed the world's first full-size LEGO house, using 3.3 million bricks. The house contained a working toilet and shower and a bed... all made out of LEGO. Legoland offered to take the house and put in their Windsor, Berkshire theme park, but took back the deal after deciding it would be too expensive to move it. They also criticized May for not asking for their help when building the house. 7. LEGO Duplo bricks (the large ones for little kids) can connect with regular LEGO bricks. Even though they are eight times the size of regular bricks, the DUPLO LEGOs connect perfectly with the regular ones. Here's a 150,000-piece LEGO creation of Helm's Deep, from "Lord of the Rings": 8. The world's largest LEGO tower contains over 500,000 bricks. Students at John Dickinson High School in Delaware built this tower in August 2013. It stands 112 feet and 11 stories high. 9. There are artists who sculpt exclusively from Legos.
You may have heard of Nathan Sawaya, a New York-based artist, who makes art out of unlikely materials. He was the first artist to ever take LEGO into the art world and currently has a touring exhibition called "The Art Of The Brick." Fellow artist, Sean Kenney, has also made a career of creating "contemporary sculpture" made out of Legos for clients and corporations worldwide. Kenney, who calls himself a "professional kid," says he likes to work with Legos because "unlike traditional art, kids love it; it gets them excited and creative. And seeing that makes it all worth while." This sculpture is part of Kenney's touring exhibit, "Big Leagues Little Bricks," which is "celebrating the beauty and lore of baseball as a part of Americana." Kenney's six-foot long map of Iowa that was displayed at the Iowa State Fair in 2013. 10. The largest commercially produced LEGO set is the Taj Majal. The set contains over 5,900 pieces. 11. This amazing kid created a Braille printer with his LEGO set.
Earlier this year, a 12-year-old child prodigy from California used his LEGO MINSTORMS EV3 set to make a functional Braille printer. Shubham Banerjee used the $350 LEGO set to make the printer after he saw a flier asking for donations to help the blind. His prototype is a fraction of the cost of other Braille printers, which retail for around $2,000 online. Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that the LEGO house was in Surrey, British Columbia. The house was actually in Surrey, Great Britain.It may appear as no more than a popular children's toy, but investors were able to secure a better return buying Lego sets over the past 15 years than from the stock market, gold or bank accounts, a Telegraph analysis found. The value of the FTSE 100 is no higher than it was in February 2000, meaning the average annual return to savers over the past decade and half is just 4.1 per cent once dividend payouts are included. By contrast, Lego sets kept in pristine condition have increased in value 12 per cent each year since the turn of the Millennium, with second-hand prices rising for specific sets as soon as they go out of production.
Modern sets are performing even more strongly, with those released last year already selling on eBay for 36 per cent more than their original price. The analysis found none of the main investments favoured by savers matched returns on the plastic building bricks. Savers who invested in gold received a 9.6 per cent annual gain over the past decade and a half, while those who went with a savings account or Isa generated 2.8 per cent, according to investment company Hargreaves Lansdown. Some Lego sets that once sold for less than £100 now fetch thousands on the secondary market. Many of the highest prices are for old sets based around films such as Star Wars or landmarks or brands such as the Taj Mahal in India or the Volkswagen Beetle. showed even sets based on everyday scenes such as police stations and town roads are soaring in value. The largest percentage rise in price for any Lego set has been on "Cafe Corner", a model of a hotel which went on sale in 2007.
The set, which has 2,056 pieces, originally sold for £89.99 but the price has risen to £2,096 since it went out of production – a return for investors of 2,230 per cent. , said the top price would be fetched only if the Lego had been kept in its box, in perfect condition. Used Lego is less valuable, but can still be worth hundreds of pounds more than its original price. "The neat thing is that all sets are retired at some point, and several hundred are retired each year a movie run ends, a licence expires or the Lego company wants to refresh its range," he said. "That means anyone with a set at home – large or small, it doesn't matter – could have quite an investment on their hands if it's in good condition, as this stuff appreciates very well in value." Most second-hand Lego is traded and bought on eBay. BrickPicker pays eBay for a breakdown of sales and compiles its own database of values and growth rates. How to invest in shares with a 99.4pc chance of success • Telegraph investor weekly newsletter: best tips and ideas
Mr Maciorowski said tens of thousands of investors across the world were pushing up prices of rarer sets. He said the growth rates would continue. "Lego investing is not hitting bubble-like status," he said. "That is partly because the Lego company doesn't promote the secondary market, it wants to sell direct to customers." Price rises can be disrupted if Lego restarts production of sets it had previously retired – but usually the effect is temporary as investors snap up the new stock, Mr Maciorowski said. The most popular type of Lego is Star Wars themed, accounting for 10 of the 20 most expensive sets. The Ultimate Collector's Millennium Falcon is the most expensive, having gone from a retail price of £342.49 in 2007 to £2,712 today. Two slightly earlier models, the Death Star II and Imperial Star Destroyer, which were released in 2005 and 2002 respectively, also fetch more than £1,000. Mr Maciorowski said the new Star Wars film, Episode VII – The Force Awakens will give the old sets a "new life" in secondary market.
"Demand is going to be off the hook," he said. "Sometimes when the next instalment of a film comes out it boosts interest: the new Fantastic Beasts films, for example, should also see demand pick up for some of the recently retired Harry Potter Lego." Laith Khalaf, an analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "The returns from Lego look pretty awesome, but investors need to beware that the value of collectables can be vulnerable to fads. "There’s absolutely no harm in buying some pieces as a hobby, and you may well make some money, but as a main building clock for your retirement I would suggest sticking to more traditional shares and bonds." Seven Lego investing tips from a pro If you are interested in a particular Lego set, buy one to build and one to save for a rainy day. Even used Lego sets can appreciate to values higher than the retail price. Putting away a few large and exclusive sets to resell in years down the road can be very profitable. Limited edition and seasonal sets do very well in the Lego secondary markets.