Antique Victorian Wax Over Composition Shoulder Head Doll c.1880

Regular price: £125.00
Sale price: £125.00
Regular price

A wonderfully characterful late 19th-century doll, dating to around 1880–1890.

The doll has a wax-over-composition shoulder head with inset dark glass eyes, delicately painted brows, mouth and rosy cheeks, together with an applied brown hair wig. She has a traditional sawdust-filled cloth body with painted lower arms and hands.

She retains an appealing group of old clothing, including a full-length cream muslin dress with puffed sleeves and an elaborate knotted lace collar, tied at the waist with black ribbon. Beneath the dress are further layers of period underclothing together with long knitted stockings.

At approximately 38 cm tall, she is a particularly decorative Victorian doll with considerable age and character. The survival of the early clothing adds greatly to her appeal.

Product variants

Size/Dimensions

Approximately 38 cm tall.

Condition

In genuine antique condition with wear consistent with age and use. The waxed surface of the face has areas of rubbing and loss, particularly to the nose, together with fine surface lines and marks. The painted fabric lower arms and hands show considerable wear, with cracking, rubbing and losses to the painted surface. There are also some small openings in the fabric, particularly around one hand, with a little of the sawdust filling escaping.

The clothing has general age-related discolouration, staining and marking, and the decorative lace collar is fragile with areas of loss and broken threads. The hair is sparse and dishevelled. The cloth body, legs and feet remain largely intact with expected age-related wear.

Late Victorian, circa 1880–1890.