Antique DOLL Collector October 2010 Vol. 13, No. 9
October 2010 Vol. 13, No. 9 95 / $695 95 Canada $595 www.antiquedollcollector.com www.antiquedollcollector.com
Learning About American-Made Dolls
Attractive Hair Styles
And Memorable Faces by Ursula R. Mertz
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hen I first began collecting, the dolls with china and so called parian heads caught my attention. Most of these nineteenth century playthings were produced with molded hairstyles. There seemed to be an endless variety of them. One day I even discovered some who featured molded hats in addition to their molded hair! I kept admiring those dolls but did not buy any because I was collecting American composition dolls and had really become quite involved with them. Eventually, I started noticing some small composition dolls with attractive, molded hairstyles. They were really quite inconspicuous, particularly when one found them without clothes. Bodies and limbs were made of cloth with composition lower arms. Some of these bodies were quite crude, stuffed with excelsior and jointed with metal pins and disks. Most of them were only 14-16� tall. As I discovered, these little dolls were produced during the decade from 1910-1920. They were sold by large as well as small companies.
Photos Otto Mertz
His name is Grumpy, and he was copied from a German bisque doll head. Grumpy scores on both counts. While kind of sparse, the curls he does have are quite distinctive. With wrinkled brow and down turned corners of mouth his expression seems modeled from life.
This may not look like Grumpy, but basically it is. The sculptor has removed the frown and created a smiling mouth. The distinctive hairstyle is identical.
As happens when one focuses on something specific, before long I was the owner of an impressive group of American made composition dolls with distinctively molded hair, all quite different in their styling. I also discovered some dolls whose molded hair was not that memorable but I loved their faces for one reason or another. With this picture essay, I would like to share these little dolls with collectors and hope that this gallery of hairstyles and faces will surprise, delight and entertain.
Grumpy must have been quite popular because I discovered additional dolls with serious expressions such as this little girl. Her hairdo is fuller and nicely waived. She was called a “Pouty Pet.�
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This sad looking little boy was not copied from a German doll.
“Really not much of a hairdo,” I reasoned while attending a doll show and passed this doll by. Then, I walked back. I could not forget that face!
A face that only a mother could love.
This little girl was also copied from a German bisque doll and is known to collectors as the Coquette. Her lovely, curly hair was further enhanced by a molded blue hair bow. She looks to one side with a contagious smile. She and the following two dolls are special. Made of all composition, they are fully jointed.
This little girl was copied from a German doll as well. Her hair was arranged quite differently including the blue hair bow, and she seems to be singing.
This child was copied from a German celluloid doll. The very short, waived hair suits this chubby face.
This little girl’s face was copied from Kammer & Reinhardt’s #114. While the original was outfitted with a real wig, a sculptor created a molded hairdo for this little doll.
Another copy of the doll to the left. This time a boy’s hairdo has been created, making the doll look quite different. 27
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31. Wonderful early Hand Carved Wood gentleman from the turn of the century - exceptional condition w/ wondrous hand carved & hand painted face & body - fully jointed wood body with mortise & tenon joints & swivel waist this young man is such a work of art, he even has jointed wrist & ankles - 13” tall $2,495. 32. Extremely rare - all original black Peterkins girl by Horsman - (1914) - this is the Campbell Kid look alike rarely found and in such great condition - sleep brown eyes sweet watermelon smile - compo & cloth body - 13” tall - $995. 33. Wonderful and ever so rare Sonneberg Taufling better known as the world famous “Motschmann Baby - circa 1850 - wonderful papier mache head w/ lovely hand painted facial features - dark bulbous eyes - original cloth & compo body w/ jointed wrist & ankles - rare large size - 18” tall - $1,995. 34. Wonderful German laughing clown w/ glorious hand painted facial features - pristine pale white bisque - cobalt blue eyes - rare open/closed laughing mouth w/ teeth - wondrous red clown features - to make him all the more wondrous - he’s mechanical - when you press his tummy - he plays his cymbals and blinks his eyes - original clothes w/ such an amazing hat - 21” tall - $1,995. 35. Grand & glorious as she can be is this super large size “Alice in Wonderland” by Madame Alexander - all original w/ tagged clothes and truly in exceptional condition - wonderful compo - gorgeous clear eyes - original Alexander arm tag - rare 21” size - $1,495. 36. Just as rare & wonderful as she can be is this amazing flirty eyed “Mein Liebling” - by Kammer & Reinhardt - mold #117n - soft as butter bisque w/ first out if the mold quality - superior hand painted facial features w/soft arched feathered brows over enormous flirty
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heather blue eyes - slightly open smiling mouth w/ soft amber shading - original teenage toddler body - original rubber hands made only for this model - 18” tall - $1,995. Another rare & wonderful find is this utterly amazing “Philadelphia Baby” by J.B. Sheppard - exceptional condition w/ no repaint - factory - excellent hand painted facial features w/ wonderful deep chestnut brown eyes - original clothes - what more could you possibly ask for - 21” tall $2,995. Another extremely rare and beautiful French bebe from the wondrous house of Jumeau - breathtaking doesn’t even come close to describing this lovely mid-period “EJ” wondrous early face w/ pristine hand poured French bisque - hand painted facial features that would make the masters weep - soft arched feathered brows over early outlined almond shaped heather blue paperweight eyes - a soft sweet hint of eye shadow enhance her eyes all the more - outlines closed mouth with that always desirable space - soft rose shading - original early straight wrist Jumeau body - original Jumeau earrings & signed shoes make her ready to come home to you - 19” tall - $9,500. Lovely French beauty - this one is an adorable & ever so sweet closed mouth child by Rabery & Delphieu - wondrous hand poured French bisque of superior quality - lovely hand painted facial features w/ soft arched feathered brows over early dark outlined enormous heather blue paperweight eyes - closed slightly smiling mouth w/ outlined soft rose shading - original fully jointed French body -19” tall $4,495. Well just take a look at this wonder of wonders - the earliest of the Raggedy Ann’s by Volland - wonderful all original condition and a nice clean face - yes she still has her original paper heart - what a treasure - 16” tall - $1,995.
41. Wow - look at this handsome young lad all dressed up in his little tux - Kammer & Reinhardt #101 - the world famous “Peter “ - soft as butter bisque with first out of the mold quality - soft heather blue hand painted intaglio eyes - with that always desirable exaggerated pouty mouth w/ soft amber shaded - wonderful vintage tux - perfect size 15” tall - $3995. 42. Just as cute and different as they could possible be are these two wonderful compo character Flexy dolls by Ideal - both are in excellent condition with great color and both have original clothes: a) “Mortimer Snerd” b) Fanny Brice as “Baby Snooks” $395. each 43. Absolutely wonderful very early “Baby land Rag” excellent hand painted facial features w/ lovely brown upturned eyes & that hint of eye shadow - sweet rose shaded puckered lips - never to be found all original condition - 14” tall - $995. 44. Well do we know cute - look at that adorable face - this lovely Edwardian young lad is a Judda character child by Cuno & Otto Dressel - soft as butter bisque w/ first out of the mold quality - wondrous hand painted facial features w/ soft arched feathered brows over heather blue sleep eyes - open laughing mouth w/ two upper teeth - to make him all the more delightful he’s on a fully jointed toddler body - just precious - 28” tall - $1,495. Oh No-o-o! We found a hairline so-o-o he is only $800. 45. We have so many rare & wonderful dolls this month & here’s another - wonderful early Belton made for the French trade by Bahr & Proschild - mold # 204 - this exquisite little character is just breathtaking beautiful - with that total French exotic look - those big chestnut brown paperweight eyes - & that lovely super exaggerated pouty mouth original straight wrist early body - 13” tall - $1,995.
KESTNER, THE PROLIFIC Part II
by Samy Odin id you ever realize, in your dolling experience, that some collections, all of a sudden, “appear” without really trying? It is exactly what happened to my father and me with dolls by Kestner. In spite of our early affection for German dolls, we never had any buying strategy about this doll maker. The dolls simply came to us over the years, through those very impenetrable ways dolls have of coming to one collector instead of to another. Many of them didn’t stay long, but others settled, up to this day. Quality always “spoke” to us, so with Kestner we couldn’t go wrong. Yet, for some reason, if you would ask to my father which German doll maker he likes the most, he would respond: “Simon & Halbig”. And if I answered the same question, I would respond: “Kling”, of whom I never owned a single doll… So, Kestner never seemed to be part of our rational collecting picture. Yet, we found Kestner dolls as early as our first year of collecting. And the last purchase we did recently, actually the very day this article was planned, is a trio of Kestner all-bisque dolls. So, now you know it took almost three decades for the Odins to do their coming out as Kestner addicts. What are the concrete proofs of this happy end love story? If I had to recall all of the Kestner dolls that crossed our way during our early years, I remember they were mostly characters in the 200 series and early 20th century “dolly face” classics. Only a few of this kind are still featured in our present collection. The lovely #167 in size “D½-8 (photo 1), for example, epitomizes the simplicity of a classic quality doll, wearing home made clothes and lovingly cared, generation after generation, until it found its way to our museum. The lady who brought it to us will be delighted to see her family doll featured in this article. An extreme sized #211 baby also has a private provenance (photo 2). We bought it because it had it all: excellent bisque quality, a pleasing expression, biggest “Q-20” size, perfect condition and charming baby clothing, including a straw “bourrelet”. Shortly after this character baby entered the collection, a smaller version of it showed up (photo 3). It has the same mold number, in the size “G-11”, yet a very different makeup, a different mouth shape (open in the big one, open/ closed in the small) and a slightly different body shape. Those were too many differences not to keep it as well.
1. Kestner’s mold 167 is a classic example of the company’s dolly face dolls. Photo by Samy Odin 2. This 211 baby measures an impressive 20 inches. We love her straw bourrelet. Photo by Samy Odin
3. Another mold 211, but quite different in appearance. We had to keep them both!
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by Jan Peterson photos Elywn Peterson
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Antique paper press.
Doll sized books made from leftovers. 48
have a dear friend who lives in the little town (beloved of Picasso) of Céret, near the Spanish border in France. During his retirement, Yves-André has learned to restore antique books. It is a fascinating craft and I have loved watching him transform a book that is nearly in tatters to its original splendor. Still of that generation who learned to read and love books that smell of leather and old paper, reading has been a passion since I first discovered the Oz books as a little girl. Watching YvesAndré give these old treasures a second life has been a favorite memory. So, it was no surprise that while in Brittany, France, I was thrilled to discover the shop of an antique book binder just a few blocks from our hotel. Stepping into the shop brought a flood of memories, as scents always do. The smell of leather and old paper was like perfume to me. The owner cordially greeted my husband and me, and we started a conversation about passions for things of the past. I told him my personal passion is antique dolls. That was what turned the conversation into a FIND! Stéphane Gangloff and his wife, Emma Coll, have been restoring antique books for many years. Stéphane loves his work, and once a book is completed, he can’t bear to just throw away the scraps of leather and marbled end papers that are left over. So, when between commissions, he fashions tiny “antique” books the perfect size for 19th century dolls! He showed me some examples and my heart started pounding! The books are made with blank pages or he photocopies whole novels in miniature and binds them just as the original peoplesized books would appear! He was putting the finishing touches on an Emile Zola masterpiece when we happened into his shop. He had made these treasures to pass the time and to sell as the odd curiosity. It had never occurred to him there could be a market among antique doll collectors for his little re-creations. I bought a set of books with blank pages for my illiterate Mlle Claire to display on the shelves of the bibliothèque in her salon. Always one to rely on her good looks, my French fashion has never bothered to learn how to read. But she likes to appear cultured, so she has collected tiny books for years. As I was telling Stéphane about my spoiled doll, he suggested keeping a diary might inspire literacy in my empty-headed, fashion-
Making a scrapbook! Leather bound doll diary.
Doll-sized scrapbook with tiny antique scrap.
Lovely marbled book interiors. The exterior of Reliure in Dinan, France. A tiny Zola edition and alphabet stamps for cover titles.
obsessed old girl. He pulled out a beautiful piece of bronzed leather and suggested making a diary for her! He even has the tiny alphabet stamps to mark in gold on the cover: Journal Intime - Mlle Claire. I was beyond myself! Then (imagination running at full speed), I asked if he could possibly create a scrap album for the hundreds of tiny Victorian scrap flowers, butterflies and children I have collected over the years. Not only that, he asked if I would like folios for her artwork (alas, also non-existent), sheet music and correspondence! OUI!!!! was my restrained response. Once these treasures arrived in the mail, I could barely control myself, and a pouty Mlle Claire is finally learning her alphabet. Stéphane and Emma would be delighted to make these wonderful treasures for your dolls as well. Their email address is: emma.coll@wanadoo.fr. If you don’t use a computer, their mailing address is: Reliure d’Art - 7 Place du Champ-clos - Dinan, France 22100 Just tell him what your doll would like and give him the dimensions. He will quote you a price plus shipping and handling from France and your doll, too, may find herself une lectrice (a reader), too!
Co-proprietor Stéphane of Reliure d’Art 49