Doll
Period1840 - 1850
Place MadeGermany
MediumComposition, wood, kid leather, cotton, cotton gauze
Dimensions11 × 3 × 2 in. (27.9 × 7.6 × 5.1 cm)
ClassificationsDolls
Credit LineGift of Mrs. Samuel Ely Perrine, 1931
Object number56
DescriptionA child's doll, comprised of a composition head with a molded hairstyle painted brown attached to a kid leather body stuffed with sawdust. Painted wooden forearms and lower legs attach to the body at elbows and knees. The doll is dressed in a simple hand-sewn pink and white printed cotton blouse with a loosely gathered neckline, elbow length sleeves, and a simple back closure above a white cotton petticoat with multiple narrow horizontal tucks. The doll's dark blue shoes are painted on.Curatorial RemarksThis simple but charming little girl's doll is made of a variety of materials and features a brightly colored "composition" head. These were created of molded resin, glue, sawdust, paper, and a variety of other materials pressed together, painted, and varnished to create a sturdy, lightweight doll's head. Molded ceramic heads were also popular, but composition-headed dolls were less prone to breakage, were lightweight, and had the added benefit of affordability. This doll also has its original kid leather body, with painted and varnished carved wooden forearms and lower legs.NotesThis was one of the first two toys donated to the Historical Association after the opening of its main museum headquarters in early October of 1931. Mrs. Samuel Ely Perrine gave two dolls, both made in Germany in the mid 1840s (see accession number 57 for the second doll). This doll retains a handwritten tag noting that one or both dolls were owned by "Aunt Sarah A. Hays." Katharyn Holmes (1880 - 1954) was the daughter of John S. Holmes of Holmdel. She married Samuel Ely Perrine in 1907.
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