Costume doll
Category
Dolls
Date
circa 1950 - circa 1976
Materials
Composition doll
Measurements
195 mm (height)
Order this imageCollection
Sudbury Hall Museum of Childhood, Derbyshire
NT 658913
Summary
A mid-20th century national costume doll (also known as souvenir, world costume, tourist and foreign travel dolls) made to resemble a man in Greek national dress. The head is composition or plastic with fabric glued on, the features moulded and painted, the hair of black wool. The body, arms and legs of stuffed fabric. The doll wears a white long sleeved ypodetes (shirt), a black waistcoat fastened with two mock silver buttons, a white fustanella (skirt), black garters, and painted black shoes with pompoms. The doll carries a shepherd's crook across the shoulders to which is attached a tartan wool bag. 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.