Wax shoulder-head doll
Category
Dolls
Date
circa 1830
Materials
Wax shoulder-head doll, textiles, glass, leather
Measurements
680 mm (height)
Place of origin
Germany
Order this imageCollection
Sudbury Hall Museum of Childhood, Derbyshire
NT 659681
Summary
A wax shoulder-head doll with blue glass eyes, painted facial features and a curly dark brown mohair wig. The wax of her face is quite cracked. Her body, arms and legs are made of cotton stuffed with sawdust or other similar material. Her hands and lower arms are of white kid to resemble long gloves. Her feet are of black velvet to resemble shoes. She has seams to form joints at the top of her legs. All her clothes are cream-white. She is wearing a muslin dress with a boat neckline and a long, curved frill which covers the full skirt like an apron as it is much deeper at the front. The hems of the dress, frill and full sleeves have a border near the edge of cream and pale blue velvet, edged with lace on the frill and sleeves. A length of muslin is sewn on at the front of the neck edge to resemble a collar, then the ends are crossed over at the back and brought back to the front where they are tied at the waist. There are sprays of fabric flowers and leaves at each shoulder and at the centre front of the neckline. A few of these have become detached. Around her waist is tied a wide blue ribbon decorated with gold ink. The dress, especially the lace, is quite frayed. Underneath is a long linen petticoat with sleeves, a linen waist petticoat, a woollen waist petticoat edged with linen, a short linen chemise, and long pantaloons with pintucks near the hem and lace edging. She is also wearing a long necklace of long, clear glass beads, doubled around her neck, and a small bonnet made from ribbon over a wire frame, decorated with lace and fabric flowers and leaves, tied under the chin with a wide satin bow (dirty and frayed). Total number of items is two