Henri d'Allemagne Dolls, ca. 1920
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GUEST:
Well, back in the 1930s and early 1940s, my mother collected old dolls at that time. And she bought them from a Mrs. Isolde Dorgen, who was showing this kind of doll in Philadelphia. Which is where we lived at the time.
APPRAISER:
Okay, well, it's interesting because usually dolls of this type come out of very, very early doll collections, usually on the East Coast. And… did your mother tell you any information that she knew about the dolls?
GUEST:
Well, she told me that they were from the court of Marie Antoinette.
APPRAISER:
Mm-hmm.
GUEST:
And that the court members would… use them as marionettes or puppets after dinner, and they would sit around and tell the gossip of the court…
APPRAISER:
Right.
GUEST:
…through them.
APPRAISER:
Was there—was there something a little bit different about these dolls?
GUEST:
Ah, yes. they are biologically... complete. (chuckles)
APPRAISER:
So, they're, like, very, very complete.
GUEST:
Yes.
APPRAISER:
And… do you know how many were produced at all?
GUEST:
I have no idea.
APPRAISER:
Okay, well, I know a little background. People sort of put them in the 18th century. They really are from the early part of the 20th century. There was a man in Paris called d'Allemagne, who wrote a doll book, and he was one of the early, early doll collectors. There probably was a few things from the 18th century, but it's never been proven. So they sort of fall in a folk art category. And… they're beautifully constructed, beautifully carved. Their clothing's usually always made out of 18th-century silk material. If you look closely at the lady, the construction of her legs is a hook, which is a 19th-century invention, not an 18th-century invention. So I mean, the early doll collectors really wanted stuff from the 18th century. This d'Allemagne person actually created these dolls. And they were shown in a Paris exhibition also in 1921 and then in Philadelphia in the 1930s. Now, any idea what your mother paid for them years ago?
GUEST:
You know, I don't.
APPRAISER:
Okay, well, today's market, they've gone down a little bit in price. I've seen them sell as high as $30,000. Probably on today's market, this particular pair by d'Allemagne, probably in the $15,000 to $25,000 range.
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