Table Of Content
- An occasional blog about modern folklore, apocryphal anecdotes, quotation research, and etymology
- Creepy porcelain dolls named Frozen Charlotte were sold in tiny caskets and baked into cakes
- Americans Named These Porcelain German Bath Dolls 'Frozen Charlotte'
- Sea Glass Note Pad
- Charlotte Is Frozen, but What a Doll
The popularity of Frozen Charlotte dolls demonstrates the 19th-century obsession with mortality and the era's preoccupation with moralizing tales. Rather than simply accepting the German dolls as a bath toy, Americans turned them into a warning and a lesson about the dangers of ignoring one's mother. I cannot but feel we collectors probably prompted by dealers are making a serious and misleading mistake in coining name for various dolls. If the trade mark is on the doll, well and good, then it is a Jumeau, a Brue, a Lerch and Klagg etc. This expression was used before me in talking over this situation “Such coinage of names puts racketeering into our hobby.” Think of this, you doll collectors.
An occasional blog about modern folklore, apocryphal anecdotes, quotation research, and etymology
Action Figure Insider » #MezcoToyz Living Dead Dolls Resurrection Frozen Charlotte - Action Figure Insider
Action Figure Insider » #MezcoToyz Living Dead Dolls Resurrection Frozen Charlotte.
Posted: Thu, 21 Jun 2018 07:00:00 GMT [source]
Adorn your Christmas tree with these miniature treasures or use them in your festive table settings to add a touch of nostalgic charm.
Creepy porcelain dolls named Frozen Charlotte were sold in tiny caskets and baked into cakes
However, if you find such a doll dressed in homemade clothes, examine its body underneath the clothes which can, and often do, disguise a broken or damaged doll. These can be purchased inexpensively, but perfect examples cost much more, depending on features, size and type. Then, there are tiny Frozen Charlotte bathtub dolls sitting in a tub. Some have long hair flowing to their feet; others wear gilt boots, or shoes and socks molded on. Aside from Frozen Charlottes, which were three-quarters of an inch and larger, there were Frozen Charlies, representing Charlotte's beau.
Americans Named These Porcelain German Bath Dolls 'Frozen Charlotte'
Shock of the old: 10 of the weirdest, wildest dolls from history – from Frozen Charlotte to the Cabbage Patch Kids - The Guardian
Shock of the old: 10 of the weirdest, wildest dolls from history – from Frozen Charlotte to the Cabbage Patch Kids.
Posted: Wed, 06 Mar 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]
They were supposed to be designed to float so that children could play with them on the beaches and in the ocean, as well as in the bathtub or a pail of water. Some had an overall pink complexion tint; some had only a pink-tinted face. Apparently business was very brisk for this new doll, as it was produced in quite large numbers by a variety of manufacturers. A New York Observer article published in February 8, 1840 included a story about a woman in upstate New York who froze to death on her way to a New Year’s ball.
For Sale: Gold From One of the Worst Shipwrecks in U.S. History
Victorian children loved to play with tiny, porcelain dolls that resembled corpses. Called Frozen Charlotte dolls, the porcelain figures reminded children of the morbid tale of a young woman who perished from the cold on a sleigh ride. Instead of focusing on vanity and fashion, like the original Charlotte, children who played with the dolls learned to listen to their parents. In fact, the so-far earliest mentions of a doll called Frozen Charlotte and couplings of the doll with the legend appear in American newspapers in the mid-1940s. And it was doll collectors and reporters writing about doll collectors who called penny dolls by this name, sometimes also referring to the legend.
More Antiques
The male version of the porcelain doll earned the name Frozen Charlie, likely after Charlotte's beau who perished of a broken heart and shared her tomb. In 1840, The New York Observer published an article about a horrific New Year's Eve accident. According to the article, "A young woman, whose name is given as Miss _____, was frozen to death while riding twenty miles to a ball on the eve of January 1, 1840." The Germans manufactured the porcelain dolls to float in the bath, a 19th-century rubber ducky. The dolls would float on their backs in bathwater, entertaining children during their baths. There isn’t a single reference (in magazines, books, newspapers, or anything else for that matter) of these porcelain dolls being called “Frozen Charlottes” in the entire 19th and early 20th centuries.
Sea Glass Note Pad
Such dolls were sold undressed (the clothes are almost always homemade) and were used in dollhouses since they wre jointed and were able to sit, unlike the Frozen Charlottes. This new doll was different, though, because whereas most of the china-head dolls represented ladies, the new doll was designed as a baby or small child. It was generally chubby in form, with molded stiff limbs and bare feet. The arms were bent at the elbows, but the legs were straight and separate. It usually had short black molded hair with brush marks framing the face.
Was this presumably Victorian connection between Charlotte’s legend and the penny doll a lingering memory from the 19th century? Another kind of doll, called a Half-Frozen Charlotte, has arms attached to the body by a wire that goes through the shoulders. These are "frozen" except for their arms, with straight, skinny little bodies. Other half-frozen types have fleshier bodies with little bellies and buttocks popping out. They were made in various styles and sizes, of bisque (unglazed ceramic), porcelain, metal, celluloid, terra cotta, ceramic, composition, wood, rubber and even molded sugar and soap.
The person who discovered the porcelain figure in their slice of cake would be crowned king or queen of the festivities. By the time the small, white porcelain dolls were introduced to the U.S. by Germany in the mid-1800s, they were quickly and commonly dubbed “Frozen Charlottes” and their male counterparts “Frozen Charlies.” Except… they weren’t. The dolls became so linked to the Frozen Charlotte story that people even bought Frozen Charlotte dolls sold in tiny caskets, like the tomb that held Charlotte in Smith's poem.
The Judge carries in his pocket a small tin coffin on which is the inscription, “This man was talked to death,” and when a long winded lawyer gets to spouting on some unimportant question the Judge places the coffin before him. Unfortunately, there was no further information attached to the item, just a lot of unanswered questions. What’s with the mega creepy inscription that seems almost threatening in tone? I’m afraid I still don’t have any answers to these questions after a week of research. However, the little corpse in the coffin had some stories to tell. With the assistance of Center staff, the intern will arrange and catalog materials in the Center’s library.
Design vignettes with a Victorian flair, placing Frozen Charlotte dolls alongside other nostalgic items like vintage books, keys, or shoe forms. Create captivating displays in a curio cabinet or glass display case, protecting the dolls while providing a charming and visually captivating arrangement. Transform Frozen Charlotte dolls into unique pieces of jewelry or accessories.
Victorian women might have decorated their shelves with delicately painted Frozen Charlotte dolls. But Americans renamed the dolls Frozen Charlotte and gave them a creepy backstory. A documented history of ownership, or provenance, can significantly impact a doll’s value.
Additional charges and exclusions may apply for rush shipping, shipping outside of the US or Canada, and shipping large items. Offer not valid at Indigo, or Chapters™ retail locations or websites. No refunds or adjustments on previous purchases or orders in progress that have not yet shipped. These little dolls can be anywhere from less than an inch up to 18 inches tall, and now turn up on beaches as a highly-sought-after find.
No comments:
Post a Comment