Children of Japan

Children of Japan
Courtesy, R. John Wright

Hinges and Hearts

Hinges and Hearts
An Exhibit of our Metal Dolls

Tuxedo and Bangles

Tuxedo and Bangles

A History of Metal Dolls

A History of Metal Dolls
Now on Alibris.com and In Print! The First Book of its Kind

Alice, Commemorative Edition

Alice, Commemorative Edition
Courtesy, R. John Wright

Translate


Emma, aka, La Contessa Bathory

Emma, aka, La Contessa Bathory
Her Grace wishes us all a Merry Christmas!

Annabelle

Annabelle

Emma Emmeline

Emma Emmeline
Our New Addition/fond of stuffed toys

Cloth Clown

Cloth Clown

Native American Art

Native American Art

the triplets

the triplets

c. 1969 Greek Plastic Mini Baby

c. 1969 Greek Plastic Mini Baby
Bought Athens on the street

Iron Maiden; Middle Ages

Iron Maiden; Middle Ages

Sand Baby Swirls!

Sand Baby Swirls!
By Glenda Rolle, courtesy, the Artist

Glenda's Logo

Glenda's Logo
Also, a link to her site

Sand Baby Castaway

Sand Baby Castaway
By Glenda Rolle, Courtesy the Artist

A French Friend

A French Friend

Mickey

Mickey
From our friends at The Fennimore Museum

2000+ year old Roman Rag Doll

2000+ year old Roman Rag Doll
British Museum, Child's Tomb

Ancient Egypt Paddle Doll

Ancient Egypt Paddle Doll
Among first "Toys?"

ushabti

ushabti
Egyptian Tomb Doll 18th Dynasty

Ann Parker Doll of Anne Boleyn

Ann Parker Doll of Anne Boleyn

Popular Posts

Tin Head Brother and Sister, a Recent Purchase

Tin Head Brother and Sister, a Recent Purchase
Courtesy, Antique Daughter

Judge Peep

Judge Peep

Hakata Doll Artist at Work

Hakata Doll Artist at Work
From the Museum Collection

Japanese Costume Barbies

Japanese Costume Barbies
Samurai Ken

Etienne

Etienne
A Little Girl

Happy Heart Day

Happy Heart Day

From "Dolls"

From "Dolls"
A Favorite Doll Book

Popular Posts

Jenny Wren

Jenny Wren
Ultimate Doll Restorer

Our Friends at The Fennimore Doll and Toy Museum

Our Friends at The Fennimore Doll and Toy Museum

Baby Boo 1960s

Baby Boo 1960s
Reclaimed and Restored as a childhood Sabrina the Witch with Meow Meow

Dr. E's on Display with sign

Dr. E's on Display with sign

Dolls Restored ad New to the Museum

Dolls Restored ad New to the Museum
L to R: K*R /celluloid head, all bisque Artist Googly, 14 in. vinyl inuit sixties, early celluloid Skookum type.

Two More Rescued Dolls

Two More Rescued Dolls
Late Sixties Vinyl: L to R: Probably Horseman, all vinyl, jointed. New wig. R: Effanbee, probably Muffy, mid sixties. New wig and new clothing on both. About 12 inches high.

Restored Italian Baby Doll

Restored Italian Baby Doll
One of Dr. E's Rescued Residents

Dolls on Display

Dolls on Display
L to R: Nutcrackers, Danish Troll, HItty and her book, Patent Washable, Mechanical Minstrel, Creche figure, M. Alexander Swiss. Center is a German mechanical bear on the piano. Background is a bisque German costume doll.

A Few Friends

A Few Friends
These dolls are Old German and Nutcrackers from Dr. E's Museum. They are on loan to another local museum for the holidays.

Vintage Collage

Vintage Collage
Public Domain Art

The Merry Wanderer

The Merry Wanderer
Courtesy R. John Wright, The Hummel Collection

The Fennimore Doll Museum

The Fennimore Doll Museum

Robert

Robert
A Haunted Doll with a Story

Halloween Dolls Displayed in a Local Library

Halloween Dolls Displayed in a Local Library

The Cody Jumeau

The Cody Jumeau
Long-faced or Jumeau Triste

German Princesses

German Princesses
GAHC 2005

A Little PowerRanger

A Little PowerRanger
Halloween 2004

The Island of the Dolls

The Island of the Dolls
Shrine to Dolls in Mexico

Based on the Nutshell Series of Death

Based on the Nutshell Series of Death
Doll House murder

Popular Posts

Total Pageviews

A lovely dress

A lovely dress

Raggedy Ann

Raggedy Ann
A few friends in cloth!

Fennimore Doll and Toy Museum, WI

Fennimore Doll and Toy Museum, WI
Pixar Animator's Collection

Little PM sisters

Little PM sisters
Recent eBay finds

Dressed Mexican Fleas

Dressed Mexican Fleas

Really old Dolls!

Really old Dolls!

Monday, September 24, 2012

Darlene's Modern Porcelain Collection

Probably Emma Clear created, or began to create, the first reproduction porcelain dolls in the 1940s. Others, many individual artists, also flocked to ceramic shops and began to make them. The Repro. market reached its peak, I think, in the 1980s, then began to decline. Companies like B. Shackman of New York made dozens of reroduction dolls; I have many in my museum collection. These were made in Japan, and well made. There were also doll house dolls, a wooden bodied mannikin doll with the head of a famous Goebel pincussion, tiny forzen Charlotte or penny dolls, a large elaborate Parian head with a decorated collar, china heads, a Jenny Lind, and Bye-lo babies and Kewpies. I stopped seeing the dolls in their disctinctive boxes in the 80s. Then, about 1985, a white procelain doll made in China began to appear in Mail Order magazine ads. One collection of these on YouTube calls them 'Wanda.' Soon, many companies including Duck House, Dynasty, Gold Key, and many others unnamed began to make Porcelain dolls with cloth bodies, wigs, often glass eyes. Toys R Us marketed a cheaply done version with open/close eyes. Many were clowns. Schmid and Gorham made higher end examples, and Goebel hired artist Bette Ball and others to crate them. Seymour Mann, a company founded by the parents of novelist Erica Jong, Seymour and Eda Mann, had their own company and made many diverse dolls. Gepettos set up kiosks in them alls. The Victorian Papers carries good examples of these dolls, and they are better made than many of their Asian counterparts. Dollar General, Younkers, Montgomery Wards, Hudson Bay Company K-Mart, Target, Everything's a Dollar and many other chains began to carry examples of the porcelain head and limbed dolls with cloth bodies. They appeared in museums in Canada, and now are plentiful in Goodwill stores. Most are not assigned much value, but I think they become colletible in coming years. They have a place in doll history; they represent a piece of nostalgia longed for by many. I know grown women who have collected the new porcelain dolls to decorate their Victorian bedrooms. I have seen them in prop in shows like "Who's the Boss," "Days of our Lives," and "Search for Tomorrow." More expensive versions appeared as prizes on "Wheel of Fortune" and other game shows. When I was young, I created my own copies of antique dolls of china using clay, playdough, Xeroxed images built up of papier mache, carved soap, carved candles, wax, etc. The porcelain dolls fueled my imaginataion. The Ruth Gibbs dolls of the 40s fit this category, too. Not many people work in porcelain anymore; a few of the Heritage Mint type companies do, and I think Ashton Drake does. The dolls are expensive to make by hand, and the best examples now have values comparable to antiques. The mass produced versions are still inexpensive; I recently bought one of Shirley Temple for $1.60 at a thrift store. Here are some examples my husband recently bought for me from a co-worker. They are about twenty years old or so, and Mint, most MIB. I hope you like the long-promised photos! :)

No comments:

Post a Comment