Porcelain dolls include both bisque and china dolls. The bisque dolls are not glazed and so have a more realistic skin tone. The china dolls are glazed, making them shiny and more durable. Porcelain dolls include the whole figure, with painted hair and stiff limbs, to dolls with fully articulated limbs that bend at shoulder, elbow, hip, knee and neck.
Older dolls, frequently made in Germany or other European countries, included the head, arms and legs, and the doll maker supplied the torso. These dolls may have leather or cloth “bodies” stuffed with any number of fillings. The body in these cases is rather rectangular, with the and legs attached at the edges of the body. Older bisque dolls often craze as well, having hairline cracks in the surface of the porcelain., but crazing alone is not a guarantee of age.
Half dolls are formed in china or bisque and include the head, arms and upper half of the torso. Holes are provided so the doll maker can add the bottom half of the doll in his or her choice of costume and method of standing for these dolls. Also available from times past are porcelain dolls with composite bodies. These early plastic bodied dolls with only porcelain heads are often jointed and can be placed in both standing and sitting poses.
Porcelain dolls were very popular children’s toys in the Victorian era, from the 1860s to 1900. Some dolls have survived from that time, but new dolls are made every year as well. For antiques dolls, the value of a porcelain doll depends on its age, condition and the presence of the original costume. The manufacturer is also important, and dolls without a makers mark may be valued lower than those with such marks.
Modern porcelain dolls are generally made as collector’s items, and their value is best determined by looking for dolls made by the same maker on the secondary market, like eBay, to see how much they sell for there. There are also people making replicas of the antique dolls, so be sure to understand what you are buying before you put any serious money into a particular doll.
Buying antique and modern porcelain dolls requires some knowledge, but there are books, magazines and clubs to help the neophyte determine what he or she wants to collect. When in doubt, talk to a member of the National Antique Doll Dealers Association (NADDA) to get a feel for the real value of the doll in question. Appraisals are generally very reasonable and may save you a lot of money until you are able to judge the value of a doll for yourself.
The images on this post are from Stock Xchnge.
Go to the Table of Contents to see all the topics covered so far.
Read more about porcelain collectibles.