Nineteenth Century Papier Maché Head Doll with Sleeping Eyes

I have seen many early papier maché dolls over the thirty-four years I’ve been in the antiques business and have never seen another one of this type that had sleeping eyes such as this one has. Of course the bisque and china and later composition dolls often had sleep eyes. I have heard of papier maché head dolls that have flirty eyes that moved from side to side. This is the first doll of this type that I’ve seen that has sleep eyes.

Click here or on the image of the doll on the right to see a slide show of ten different views of the doll.

This is a large doll, measuring 32 inches in length. She has molded black hair with a center part and pronounced short ringlets in the back. She has glass eyes which move so that when she is placed on her back, she appears to be sleeping. I can hear a weight moving inside her head when I move her from an upright position to a sleeping position. The details of her face appear to be all original. I have used a backlight to examine her head in a dark room and I can see no evidence of any restorations to her head and shoulder plate.

Her body is stuffed cloth which appears to be a combination of early linen cloth and later fine cotton cloth. The cloth to which her shoulder plate is attached appears to be nineteenth century linen with brown stains from glue. The cloth of the rest of her body including her arms and legs appears to be a later fine cotton cloth which I think may have been used in the 1920s or 30s. I believe that her head and shoulder plate are nineteenth century and that at some time in the twentieth century someone did a restoration of her arms and most of her body. I believe that they kept the original part of her upper torso that was under the shoulder plate and attached it to a restored body.

There is a thin horizontal line that runs across the surface of the back of the shoulder plate and a couple of shorter lines but these lines are very thin and appear to be only in the surface of the papier maché. I have provided a number of photographs to give you an accurate picture of her condition. The upper undergarment may be original to the doll as it appears to be nineteenth century. The cotton petticoat is old but has had alterations at the waist that lead me to believe that it was not original to this doll. The bloomers are old but I don’t think they are nineteenth century.

The red leather shoes are antique but are somewhat small for her feet. However, it is possible that they are the original shoes and that her feet ended up being larger when her body was restored. The stockings have holes in the toes and may be original to the doll. The dress appears to be an early twentieth century dress and is not very attractive. A nineteenth century cotton dress would be much more appropriate for her. What is most interesting about this doll is her head which has sleep eyes which is very rare for this type of head.

Price: $3,500.00

PA residents add 6% sales tax or provide a valid resale number.

Shipping: Please inquire. Cost will vary according to destination. Shipping would be by U.S. Registered Mail insured.

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Rare Original Box for 1848 Patent Goodyear Rubber Doll Heads

Original cardboard box which originally held 1848-1862 patent Goodyear Rubber doll heads. The box bottom retains most of the original informative paper label. The label has a chip missing off of the bottom right corner. The box lid is missing. The box bottom has a 3/4" tear on one side & there are some bends & wear & soiling from age.

The label mentions that the box originally held one dozen doll heads.

The box label also has the wording "Manufactured by New York Rubber Co." & also "Charles Goodyear's Patent, April 25, 1848, and extended 1862. New York Rubber Co's. Patent, March 28, 1854." Additionally, there are "Directions for putting India Rubber Heads on Cloth Bodies".

 

 

 

The box measures 9" long by 8 1/2" wide by 3 7/8" tall. A rare box for an advanced early doll collector.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Price: $155.00

PA residents add 6% sales tax or provide a valid resale number.

Shipping: Please inquire. Cost will vary according to destination. Shipping would be by U.S. Mail insured.

Steiff's 100th Anniversary Papa Bear, 1980 Limited Edition

This beautiful 17 1/2" Steiff Teddy Bear is Steiff's 100th Anniversary Papa Bear, the first Limited Edition Bear Steiff produced for the world-wide market. This edition was released in 1980 (although by some accounts the year was 1981). It is a replica of one of Steiff's first teddy bears that were made in the early years of the 20th century.

To see a slide show of different views of this bear, click here or on the image on the right.

The Papa bear edition was limited to 11,000 worldwide but the American part of that edition was 5,000. The number 0153/43 is imprinted in black on the white cloth tag. Also printed in black on the back of the tag is: "Made in W. Germany. Am. Ed. 1591." Behind the cloth tag is a paper tag on which is printed, "All new material including Filling 100% excelsior Cover 50% mohair 50% cotton – PA 55 – MASS 73."

The paper tag has a slight crease and a small tear. The button has the incised script Steiff mark. The bear is in near mint condition with no dirt, no wear (other than a bit to the paper tag as mentioned previously), no fading. There is a 1/8" wide by 1/4" long surface abrasion to the pad of one paw where the fabric is a bit thin but this is not obvious and is noticeable only on close inspection.

He came from a smoke free house and he has no odors of smoke or anything offensive. He does not have his original box or certificate.

Price: Sold!

PA residents add 6% sales tax or provide a valid resale number.

Shipping: Please inquire. Cost will vary according to destination. Shipping would be by U.S. Mail insured.

Cast Iron Toys

This page is under construction.

 

(Awaiting pictures. To be added shortly.)

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