Costume doll
Category
Dolls
Date
circa 1960 - circa 1976
Materials
Plastic doll
Measurements
192 mm (height)
Order this imageCollection
Sudbury Hall Museum of Childhood, Derbyshire
NT 658980
Summary
A 1960s or 1970s costume doll moulded in plastic, historically catalogued as representing a woman from an African or Caribbean country. The head, body and legs moulded in a single piece; the arms jointed at the shoulders. With painted facial features and black mohair hair styled in a bun. The doll wears a headwrap of striped red and yellow cotton, hooped and beaded earrings, a blue and white striped and patterned chemise, with full three-quarter length sleeves, and a white lace-like collar with red braid and a necklace of pearl-like beads with a red gem-like bead in the centre. Below the doll wears a full red cotton skirt printed with a black and white floral motif, and over that a yellow nylon apron printed with red flowers and white lace edging. The shoes are painted on in red. 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.