The Development of The Dolls House
Collecting dolls houses, particularly the plastic accessories for Barbie or Cindy, is a relatively recent phenomenon. Just how long these injection moulded products will last is anyone’s guess, however, recreating houses and their contents in detailed miniature is a hobby that’s been around for centuries in one form or another.
The earliest recorded dolls house – an exquisitely detailed replica of his own fully furnished residence – was owned by Albert V, Duke of Bavaria, in the mid 1500s.Following his example, many other wealthy people began to commission miniatures by expert craftsmen.These were not meant to be children’s playthings but were intended as a public display of taste, wealth and social standing.
Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, these miniature creations began to be considered appropriate for the children of the wealthy. Not as toys though!Rather they were used as visual aids to educate young girls about the domestic management duties that any young woman would be expected to perform when she became mistress of her own household. It wasn’t until the mid 19th century that the concept of “childhood” was really developed and the dolls house became more of a plaything. They were still the product of craftsmanship however and restricted to the children of the well heeled middle and upper classes.No well run middle class nursery was considered complete without one.
The Victorian age saw the beginning of industrial mass production, which changed the dolls house from lavish miniature heirloom into a genuine child’s toy.The major innovator in this, and many other types of mass produced toy, was Germany, which exported dolls houses and accessories all over the world.
But the adult upper class fascination with reflecting their lifestyle in miniature persisted.Queen Mary, the wife of King George V of England, was a devotee of dolls houses. In the early 1920’s she commissioned one of the foremost architects of the day, Sir Edwin Lutyens, to design and build a dolls house for the queen’s personal pleasure. As in the preceding centuries, fine craftsmen of the day were involved in the production of Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House, which can still be seen on display in Windsor Castle.
Nowadays the mass production of dolls houses for fashion dolls (and even woodland creatures!) as toys for children runs alongside the hobby of miniature collecting by adults. Arguably, diorama sets for model figures – be they model soldiers or Sci-Fi characters – are dolls houses too in spirit at least. There are a growing number of specialist shops, miniatures fairs and dolls house publications to cater for adult enthusiasts who like to recreate past eras in whole houses or specific scenes. Some enjoy making the models themselves, while others prefer to collect craftsman-made pieces. The aim is to achieve accurate detail to capture the right mood, character and period, making a hobby into a (very lucrative!) art form.
Super Soldier Nesbit Faulkner – Action Figure Therapy
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Red Soldier Nutcracker Wooden Figure (13.75H) $29.99 Available in different style: blue, green, yellow, burgundy knights, carpenter, drummer. (please click on the House of Gift link under the product title to view more style).——————- The Nutcracker Soldier is elegantly dressed in a bright red uniform and hat along with an axe and lantern. This is a good decorative accessories for your home or office during any holiday season. Size: 13.7… |
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Carpenter Nutcracker Wooden Figure (13.75h) with Hammer and Tool $14.99 The Nutcracker carpenter is vividly dressed in a carpenter outfit along with a hammer and tool. This is a good decorative accessories for your home or office during any holiday season. Size: 13.75″H x 4.25″W Nutcrackers in the form of wooden carvings have existed since at least the 15th century.Originally one could insert a nut in the big-toothed mouth, press down and thereby crack the nut…. |
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Buff-coloured jug Photo Mugs Buff-coloured jug with moulded decoration on the body depicting standing figures of a sailor in a sennit hat waving, a Highland soldier and two other armed soldiers, with a profile of Queen Victoria under the lip, within a laurel wreath and surmounted by a royal crown….. |
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The Indian in the Cupboard $4.52 Young Hal Scardino stars as a sensitive boy who discovers a way to bring plastic toys to life in a locked cupboard. One of those toys, a 19th-century Iroquois warrior (played by actor Litefoot), was actually a real warrior now only several inches tall. A bond eventually develops between boy and warrior, and a six-shooting toy cowboy (David Keith). As with E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, The Indian i… |
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Crusty Demons $11.30 To coincide with the 2008 crusty demons regional tour taking in nsw, qld, nt & tas, comes another rocking collection of noise inspired by the infamous action sports phenomenon. Packed with adrenalin-pumping high octane tunes across two cds from the likes of fallout boy, kaiser chiefs, system of a down, marilyn manson, my chemical romance, prodigy, cog, slipknot, korn, panic at the disco and many … |
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Field Marshall Erwin Rommel,German Soldiers $12.00 TRACK LIST: Anti-Social – Somethings Gotta Change – The Only One – Backstreet Kids – Unbeliever – 9 till 5 – Outsider – Jailbait – I Don’t Need Your Love – Better off Crazy – Gotta Be Young – Government Action – Won’t Get Fooled Again – You’re So Dumb – I Don’t Like You :RARE RELEASE CAPTURING THE ORIGINAL SKREWDRIVER LINE UP IN ALL THEIR FANTASTIC GLORY… |
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Praying Soldier Shadow Plan (Woodworking Project Paper Plan) $7.00 Reverent soldier is just over 3 high to the top of his backpack. Life size pattern and display. Includes 6″ tall scrollsaw pattern…. |
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Major Werner Molders $32.00 Werner was an outstanding leader in the Luftwaffe. During the WWII he was the first German pilot to achieve 100 air victories. His WW2 total was 101 plus 14 in Spain. He became Inspector Gen. of Fighter. He was killed in an air crash in 1941…. |
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G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra $3.33 Based on Hasbro’s immensely popular action figures, G.I. Joe is the ultimate elite fighting force, engaged in an extraordinary action-adventure matchup of good versus evil! In G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, the G.I. Joe team, armed with the coolest hi-tech gadgets and weapons, travels the world from the Egyptian desert to the polar ice caps in a high stakes pursuit of Cobra, an evil internatio… |
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The Thing from Another World $6.68 With its modest special effects, lean plot, and small cast of lesser stars, this 1951 thriller remains a sturdy blueprint for fusing horror and science fiction. The formula has been employed countless times since, fleshed out with more extensive and elaborate production values, and manned by higher profiled marquee names, but the results have yet to improve on The Thing from Another World, Howa… |