I'm going to interupt my hiatus today, because I've got something to share that I've been wanting for quite some time. Today's post is (partially) about a china doll. Not Eva, though. No, I'll have to make her a body, as my attempts to find one in the right size have proved fruitless. That last post was what, four years ago? <pauses to count> It's been six years since I last monkeyed with Eva and her friends. Anywho, on June 10th I wondered about the prices on eBay for "pet name" china dolls, dolls that are similar to my Eva but have names molded and painted onto their chests, below the neckline of any dress they might wear, but still accessible if one looks. As it happens, pet name china dolls are relatively affordable, more so than Simon and Halbig dolls (spoilers), so I grabbed one. A big one. Ethel is her name. Not my favorite name, LOL.
If I could've cherry-picked a name I'd have named her Dorothy or Helen or Esther (all pet name options), but Ethel was pretty, affordable, and well-dressed, so I picked her. Here's what her nameplate looks like; some of the paint has worn off, but her name is legible. Forgive my groady nails, LOL.
As I said above, Ethel is not my favorite name, but it's better than Bertha. Bertha was also an option, and I hate that name with a passion. Like my Eva, Ethel is late china, made towards the end of the china doll's heyday. Hertwig made most of 'em, though neither Ethel nor Eva are marked...take that back, Ethel is marked, but the markings are hard to read.
Here's a closeup of Ethel's face. Her head is turned slightly to the right.
Unlike Eva, Ethel is a big doll, at 22 inches. Shehas a fully cloth/kid body (Eva had cloth with porcelain limbs) with really big legs covered in really big socks!
Truth be told, while I keep calling Liesel a Simon and Halbig doll, she was actually produced by another German company named Heinrich Handwerck. Simon and Halbig did make their own dolls, but they also produced heads for other companies like Handwerck and one of my favorites, Kammer and Reinhardt. The latter was responsible for one of my all-time favorite bisque dolls, Mein Liebling. Anyway, when Simon and Halbig did this they'd mark the head with both their name and the name of the other company, just as they did here.
The seller said that Liesel dates from around 1900 or so and is an example of Handwerck's early work. She's a big doll, similar in height to both Ethel, with a fully jointed compo body. Those balls at her knees are separate pieces.
Here's a better look at Liesel's face. She does have little teeth showing, but from some angles they're hard to see.
It's interesting: Liesel and Ethel are both German dolls, both antiques, and both north country girls (they came from Port Huron, Michigan and Yarmouth Port, Massachusetts, respectively), but that is all they have in common. Their hair color, their eye color, their measurements and the media from which they're constructed, it's all different.
I've made a few references to Carl Fox's The Doll in the past, and one of my favorite images in the book is Plate 50, showing a pairing similar to what I've got.
Fox writes stories for each doll in his book, and he notes that the difference between these two is like a cloudy day vs. a sunny day. He goes on to say that the bisque doll is unhappy, bothered by a premonition that she had before World War I. The premonition was that the years to come would bring sadness for the doll and her family, and indeed, she was separated from them in 1914 and never saw them again. She also has really big legs, LOL. The china doll is as Edwardian as they come, being very strict about her manners and morals. Fox goes on to say that the two dolls became close friends, and while they were polite to their French housemates they didn't go out of their way to be friendly. In the late 1800s and early 1900s there was no love lost between French dolls and German dolls. As for me...jeez those French bisque girls are expensive! And truthfully they're no better or worse than Hattie and Mabel and Liesel are. Or Katsumi, can't forget her. Next goal??? Find a way to display this old squad all together.
Next post will be June 24th, rain or shine. That's the day I talk to my doctor.
Next post will be June 24th, rain or shine. That's the day I talk to my doctor.
All of my love,
RagingMoon1987
No comments:
Post a Comment