Connoisseur Numbering

Has anyone else noticed that Reeves is now "officially" numbering the Connoisseur models when they advertise them in Just About Horses? Auld Lang Syne was No. 90148, and Nektosha is No. 90149. I had noticed these 90100 series numbers on the boxes of some of the Connoisseurs I had received earlier, but I was hesitant to designate them as the official release numbers: they could have been an assortment code, shipping code, tracking number, anything really.

Whatever comfort I find in the confirmation of the numbering scheme, it’s tempered by the fact that we can’t just project the numbers back to the beginning and fill in the blanks. If we simply reverse number all of the Connoisseurs back from the numbers we now know, the number for Mosaic should be #90113. According to my records, though, the number I found on the box when he arrived on my doorstep was #90117.

Hmm. I wonder where the system went kafloobie? I’m guessing it was relatively early, since the numbers seem to match up all the way to Winsome, and she was a mid-2003 release. Another possibility is that the system was correctly numbered all along, and I simply recorded the Mosaic’s number incorrectly.

The only way to know for sure is to track down those earlier box numbers - anyone else out there manage to keep track of these box numbers beyond the dozen or so I have records for?

I promise to share - if it’s bugging me, I’m sure it’s bugging some of you, too. Oh, the world of good Reeves could do by just releasing the official numbers for every obscure release that they spring on us! Little things like that make anal-retentive collector types like me very happy. (I think I actually eeked out a little "squee" when I noticed they had posted the 2004 Fiero’s official number on the Facebook page the other day: 711404.)

Cataloging the herd isn’t quite as satisfying when all you can do to a model is assign it some generic alpha-numeric code you have to make up on your own: "JAH SR 09" doesn’t have the same satisfying ring as a "90148." I’m just weird like that - and I’m guessing that since you made it to the end of this post, most of you are, too. Or at least understand.