Costume doll
Category
Dolls
Date
circa 1950 - circa 1976
Materials
Plastic doll
Measurements
250 mm (height)
Order this imageCollection
Sudbury Hall Museum of Childhood, Derbyshire
NT 658908
Summary
A mid-20th century national costume doll (also known as souvenir, world costume, tourist and foreign travel dolls) made to resemble a woman in traditional Greek costume. With a fabric-covered moulded plastic face and painted facial details, artificial hair dressed in two plaits; wearing a cream fabric head scarf and atop the head carrying a round wicker basket containing a piece of cream lace and several other small pieces of coloured fabric. The doll wears black plastic shoes and white fabric stockings. Over these she wears a red fabric long sleeved dress with green, yellow and white trims at the hem and cuffs. Over this she wears a yellow satin apron with gold, green and black decoration. Over the apron she wears a second highly decorative apron which has a green bodice with gold trims and gold sash at the waist. The lower half or skirt of the apron is dark red at the back, but is folded back to reveal cream panels trimmed with gold and green. Her left hand is positioned at her side and her right hand is raised as if she is supporting the basket. Costume dolls representing people of different nationalities in their local dress have been made since the mid-19th century. As global travel expanded ‘world’ dolls were produced as tourist souvenirs as well as children’s toys. They appear in a variety of media, from paper to porcelain, polymer to plastic. Produced to be instantly recognisable and collectible, ‘world’ dolls can portray a stereotypical view of peoples and cultural identities.
Provenance
One doll from a collection of costume dolls donated by Mr R.T. Macfarlane in 1976.