Whether traditional, formal, or exotic, the beauty and originality of antique
dolls has captured the hearts and affection of many generations. Their great appeal
comes most certainly from their prolific, though inanimate propensity to inspire a
certain nostalgic affection along with a more tangible surety for historical and/or
market value to the discerning eye. In antiquity, in many cultures, dolls had a
special significance in the lives of both the old and the young. They often
represented the gods along with other supernatural figures, and were fashioned from
ivory and other valuable materials, while being set with precious stones. The
traditional consensus among archaeologists is that they are thought to be the
world’s first toy, and one the first sources of diversion for children of both sexes
in the ancient world. The most famous associated with the ‘genus’ of the antique
variation are the immensely popular porcelain dolls. These have become one the
worlds most universal collector’s items, with some even being valued in the tens of
thousands of dollars. Porcelain dolls are most admired by collectors for their
realistic quality and for their cultural distinction. The first porcelain doll heads
were created in mid to late seventeen-hundreds, in Cornwall, England. These were
considered to be the most realistic of that time, and in the nineteenth century,
bisque (unglazed china) doll heads came into vogue. These were immediately popular
because of the closer affinity to actual skin tone of the bisque versus the glazed
china heads, though both were interchangeably referred to as ‘porcelain dolls.’ As
the ‘porcelain’ evolution continued, antique dolls began to mirror the styles and
customs of their time in their dress and hairstyles. The french doll makers brought
this trend to perfection, when in the 1860’s and 70’s they began to be commissioned
by their some of their more distinguished clients to custom make dolls which
mirrored certain trends at home and the ever more exotic ones abroad. Papier-mache
and wax dolls, and other antique varieties of the time, were soon surpassed, and
figuratively thrown into the kiln fire from whence the porcelain dolls emerged,
though papier-mache continued to be a formidable ‘rival’ for its china/ceramic
counterpart, being mass produced alongside them in the French and German markets.
Today antique dolls have ceased entirely to be diminutively given the name ‘toy’,
but rather to many of their devotees they are works of art, worth the thousands of
dollars to restore them and purchase them, and cherish them as sacred relics of eras
doldolpassed.

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