Antique Dolls
Antique dolls make a great collecting topic and can be very
rewarding, personally and financially. Personally you can
enjoy tremendous rewards from the thrill of the search, the
joy of acquiring knowledge, the actual fun in tracking down
interesting dolls and the social interactions with other
collectors. The financial rewards can come from your
acquired knowledge and the skill with which you apply that
knowledge when you sell or trade dolls to upgrade your collection.
It is very important to understand the potential defects in dolls
and how they affect the long-term value of a particular doll.
Collectors will forgive some defects but not others –
depending upon the rarity and desirability of the doll. Eye
damage, cracks, chips, stains and missing parts all have varying
negative effects upon the value of a doll.
Dolls come in all forms, subjects, and sizes. They range in age
from prehistoric to modern. Dolls were and are made commercially
in France, Germany, the United States and Japan. Of course, very
large numbers of dolls were home made and form a substantial
genre of today’s collecting climate. An almost infinite variety of
different materials have been used in the construction and
manufacture of dolls over the ages. Fine European fashion dolls
were made from bisque, porcelain, leather, or glass and were
dressed in beautiful fabrics and adorned with exquisitely crafted wigs.
Lesser commercial dolls and those crafted at home were made from
whatever materials were cheap and at hand such as carved wood,
corn husks, simple rough cloth, vinyl plastic, wax, china, pottery
and paper mache.
The market value of dolls varies widely. Many are relatively
inexpensive, although they can make a very nice and enjoyable
collection that is attractive and displays well. However, some
fine, older and rarer dolls that are unusually attractive and well
dressed can be quite expensive. That makes assembling a
collection of them require very deep pockets indeed. Additionally,
assembling such a collection requires expert knowledge on the
part of the collector and the guidance of a top quality dealer. It
pays great dividends to be intimately acquainted with a knowledgeable
dealer and have an exceptional reference library if you intend to
collect higher end material.
To view the associated video please click on the link below.
