This important book from the author of three previous books on antique German dolls, features ground-breaking new research on the parian dolls produced by eight factories in Germany during the late 19th century. In preparing this book, the author travelled to the sites of the factories in Thuringia to dig for important artefacts; her labours uncovered over 1,000 porcelain shards that show the distinctive facial painting used by each factory highlighted in the book. These discoveries, combined with her collection of original porcelain factory ledgers and sample books, allow her to attribute with certainty the makers of these beautiful dolls, especially those produced during the 1860s and 1870s and previously designated as being by "unknown makers". Mary Krombholz also makes use of rare written records describing daily life inside a 19th-century porcelain factory to clearly delineate the significant role played by each worker in doll production. Her narrative clarifies not only the process of making porcelain dolls in the 19th century, but also presents a vivid picture of life in the Thuringian villages in which these factories were located. Over 350 colour photographs, all close views detailing the painting and decoration of these pieces, accompany the invaluable text, making this the most significant volume on German parian dolls to be published.

Featuring 350 colour photographs with the loving face of each doll clearly visible to aid in the identification process. This book is a treasure trove filled with detailed photo captions that identify the maker. The author has used research methods to correct many so-called names to the authentic original name. Each doll is credited to the decade in which it was primarily produced. Male china dolls, all-china dolls and reproduction china dolls are described in chapters that are separate from the ten decades of china doll production.

Every captivating color photograph will have you turning the page for more! 500 color photos out of 588 total from the firms: Alt, Beck & Gottschalck, Dressel, Hertel Schwab, Heubach, Kling, Simon & Halbig, plus 16 others. Thus the book identifies heads dating from 1840-1900 with their respective manufacturers.

This outstanding reference book features tantalizing color photos and descriptions of over 350 dolls produced in German porcelain factories from 1836 to the present. Take a pictorial tour of a 100-year-old porcelain factory to learn how antique porcelain dolls were made. Original sample books, old doll molds and porcelain shards identify the makers of many previously unknown china, parian-type, and bisque dolls. From the Kestner dolls to the artist dolls of today, this book provides an in depth look at sought-after German porcelain dolls. The colorful Hertwig bonnet head dolls, the expressive Gebruder Heubach character dolls, the top-of-the-line Kestner dolls, the captivating Simon & Halbig dolls as well as the detailed Carl Schneider half dolls are showcased in this book. Dozens of early, unmarked chinas made by the A.W. Fr. Kister porcelain factory in Scheibe-Alsbach are pictured in detail. Dolls from the following porcelain factories are also included in this book: Alt, Beck & Gottschalck; Baehr & Proeschild; Wm. And F.W. Goebel; Ernst Heubach; C.F. Kling & Co.; Gebruder Knoch; Gebruder Kuhnlenz; Limbach; Armand Marseille; Theodor Recknagel; Carl Scheidig; Schoenau-Hoffmeister; Swaine & Co.; Hermann Voigt; and Weiss, Kuhnert and Co. This is a must-have book for the doll lover.

A challenge to artists in Munich, Germany, in 1908 changed the doll industry forever. Invited by the Hermann Tietz department store to create dolls resembling real children, a group of artists responded by making dolls bearing remarkably lifelike expressions, wearing "children-of-the street" clothing . The overwhelmingly positive reaction to the exhibition of their work at the store inspired major German doll manufacturers to produce a new kind of doll, one very different from those that had dominated doll-making up to that time. This was the birth of what has become known as the German character doll. Character dolls were produced in the first few decades of the twentieth century by a wide range of manufacturers and are highly sought-after by collectors today. For years confusion has abounded as to the proper identification of these dolls, as different factories made different parts and yet other factories, often relying on home workers, assembled the dolls. In this comprehensive, profusely illustrated book, veteran researcher Mary Gorham Krombholz unravels the mysteries behind the production of these dolls and identifies the makers of their bisque heads. Relying on firsthand research, often conducted on the very grounds in Germany where they were made, and primary sources, she documents the complex and labour-intensive processes by which character dolls were produced in the two major doll-making areas of Thuringia: Waltershausen and Sonneberg. Individual and group photographs of over 800 character dolls, accompanied by detailed captions including highlighted markings, dominate this invaluable volume. Personal historical accounts by those who worked for the doll manufacturers, along with hand-coloured period photos, shed light on the specific tasks entailed in every aspect of the doll-making process, from mould making to glass-eye blowing to assembling the shipping boxes. Unequalled in depth and breadth, this is an enlightening and enthralling reference that every character-doll collector must own.

Luckily for today's antique doll collectors German doll firms were very careful about placing identifying marks on their work. Until now, however, there was never a definitive work on the assorted markings. This book possesses detailed information on every single mold#, word, or symbol you will find on an antique German bisque dolls. It it's not in this book, it's not German.

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