Babyland Rag Topsy-Turvy Doll, ca. 1905
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GUEST:
It was my mother's favorite doll when she was a child. She was born in 1906. I believe her father probably gave it to her. Her father was a tugboat/ barge captain up in New England. He died in 1910.
APPRAISER:
I think it's very interesting, not only being a black doll, but owned by a person like your mom and everything to have a black doll. And this doll was made in New York. The company was based out of New York. The name of this doll was Babyland Rag, and they made a lot of different rag dolls. They made painted face rag dolls and they made printed face rag dolls. You can see this one is printed. Very nicely done. Horsman and Babyland Rag made these dolls. They started about 1893. This could be as late as 1910. The clothes are made of cotton.
GUEST:
Yes.
APPRAISER:
Everything is all original. I thought it was a very nice doll when you brought it in, but when I looked at it, I wasn't sure about it. And after I looked at it, I noticed that it's a bear on the other side.
GUEST:
It is, it's a bear.
APPRAISER:
Which makes it really unusual. I've never seen this before in 40 years of buying and selling dolls, and I think it could have been specially made. It's not an American bear; it's a Steiff bear.
GUEST:
This is a Steiff?
APPRAISER:
Yeah. When I first looked at it, I thought maybe it was something that was homemade or someone had done something, but the proportions are exactly right. I looked at the stitching around the waist, and everything seemed like it was factory-done. But it's very unusual, very nice doll, and very good condition. Have you ever had it appraised?
GUEST:
Oh, no, no.
APPRAISER:
It's called a Topsy-Turvy. But normally on a Topsy-Turvy, you have a black face on one side and a white face on another.
GUEST:
Yes, I've seen those.
APPRAISER:
But like I said before, I've never seen a bear on the other side.
GUEST:
When my mother gave it to me, I just put it in my... It's in my bedroom and I have it out so I can see it all the time.
APPRAISER:
Okay. I think this doll is worth between $850 and $1,000. That's retail price, on the retail market, if you were going to sell it. But at auction, it could actually go for more.
GUEST:
Wow.
APPRAISER:
It's very unusual.
GUEST:
It is. Thank you so much!
APPRAISER:
You're welcome.
Appraisal Details
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