Dolls - one of the oldest toys

Dolls are one of the oldest toys on the world. However, the group of doll lovers is no longer only young girls. There is an extensive variety of dolls available in the toy market today which also caters to collectors. There are classic baby dolls for kids, collectable dolls such as porcelain dolls, unique antique dolls or Barbie dolls which undergo rapid change in accessories and fashion. Doll makers are not only manufacturing or mass producing dolls; also other items are extending their value chain. There is a comprehensive range of accessories available for playing with dolls or presenting them: doll houses, doll beds or doll clothes. In doll suppliers’ portfolios, also stuffed animals such as teddy bears or marionettes can be found.

Historic overview

When tracing back the history of dolls, kids have ever loved dolls. Throughout the centuries look, material, size and features have changes. The oldest dolls were traced back to old China and were made of straw. Other very old dolls were often made of clay, wood, plant fibres, cloth or papier-mâché. However, these natural materials are very perishable. This is one of the reasons, why we do not have these kinds of dolls in museums and collectors’ exhibitions.

When in former times the doll maker’s job was dominated by manual work, most dolls today are mass produced in factories. In the 19th century, dolls and the doll house were mainly made of wood in manual labour: carving, putting together, painting. To give the dolls a natural touch, they were covered by a wax coating. In the course of the 19th century, porcelain dolls became more and more popular. The examples for dolls have up to then been adult women and wore the fashion items of that time.

The so called French “Bébé” created a change in the doll industry at the end of the 19th century, as the baby doll was the copy of a small child. Dolls with character faces were very modern from 1910 on. For the first time, also crying and weeping dolls were available. Between 1930 and 1940, the doll manufacturers also produced more dolls made of plastic which replaced more and more the material porcelain.

Are you active in the dolls wholesale or are you looking for a business matching in the wholesale of baby doll fashion items? Then access this B2B platform and benefit from the database of products, producers and trends in the toy and game industry.