Vintage collectible WEST GERMANY Doll from the Bookcase Collectable Dolls, The New Bright Collection, #900 (c. 1992) This vintage collectible doll is from a series of 12 different countries have moveable head, arms and legs, comb-able hair and realistic costume. The blue eyes close when the doll is flat. This collectible West Germany Doll measures approximately 8" and has never been removed from the box.
"Gutten Tag! Gretchen is from West Germany which was recently reunited with her sister country of East Germany.
She is proud of her Bavarian heritage and longs to visit the castles of the Rhine River."
This vintage collectible doll representing Germany has braided golden brown braided hair tied with yellow ribbons and curly bangs, a red cotton skirt with a wide band of yellow and another of green, lace trim with a white blouse with lace trim at the wrist of the long sleeves, and a lace trimmed white shall with flowers, and black shoes and white socks/stockings. Please note that this doll seems to be missing the traditional black felt hat seen on other collectible Bookcase dolls..
These collectible dolls representing twelve countries were originally available at fine department stores. This "Gretchen" collectible doll representing Germany would make an excellent addition to your vintage doll collection.
People have made dolls for thousands of years for use as religious objects, toys, and holiday displays. Many traditional dolls, like the Japanese Kokeshi, are still highly desirable today. Many early American dolls were made of rags, or cloth, and are a reminder of the simple life in the 18th and 19th centuries.
In the 19th century, French and German dolls were the most popular and innovative dolls in the western world. In the early 1850s, the Bebe doll appeared in France, starting the custom of making dolls in the form of infants and young children (as opposed to adults). The Germans caught on, and soon both countries were producing porcelain-headed dolls.
Late in the 1800s, the French started making dolls with unglazed heads, and the unglazed colored clay more accurately represented a human skin tone. These dolls became known as bisque dolls, and they remain a staple of doll-making.
Shortly thereafter, German doll makers started experimenting with celluloid, a lighter-weight and less breakable material. Celluloid dolls were popular for a number of years, despite the fact that the material was flammable. Dolls in Europe, Japan, and America made of celluloid, such as the famous Kewpie doll, were eventually replaced by dolls made of plastic, or composition dolls, made of a mix of materials including glue and sawdust.
The early 20th century saw the launch of a number of famous doll-making companies, such as Ideal, which became known among other things for its best-selling Shirley Temple dolls. Another was Vogue, which produced the Ginny doll, and of course Mattel, which launched its blockbuster Barbie line in the late 1950s.
Though most antique dolls started out as toys, some dolls have been sought by collectors from the beginning. A good example is the Simpich Doll Company, which produced small numbers of limited edition Christmas and Americana-themed dolls for over 50 years. http://www.collectorsweekly.com/dolls/overview
A2558 - Vintage Boxed Collectible WEST GERMANY Doll / Bookcase Collectable Dolls by The New Bright Collection #3
$20.00 FREE SHIPPING
