Celluloid Dolls — European, Japanese and American

              By Julie Pelletier Robinson

Some of the most beautiful dolls ever made were manufactured around the turn of the 20^th century from a newly invented material called celluloid. This material revolutionized the toy making industry, and today it is changing the way some people view doll collecting.

Until recently celluloid has been frowned upon by many purist who have an affinity toward dolls made of traditional materials like bisque, china, porcelain and composition.  According to some doll experts, celluloid has little appeal to the “serious” collector because it is a material that has certain drawbacks; it fades, it cracks and it is flammable.

One collector pointed out that a china doll can be wrapped in tissue and laid in the bottom of a blanket chest with stuff on top of it and after 30 years it will be in fine condition,  whereas a celluloid doll would probably have suffered some sort of damage.  (Under certain conditions celluloid deteriorates and may become brittle.)

It’s true, celluloid is not as sturdy as other doll making materials, but that’s because it wasn’t meant to be.  Early advertisements claim that celluloid was lightweight, unbreakable and waterproof. These were qualities that made it conducive to play rather than collecting, and while its drawbacks are valid concerns, today’s collector of the celluloid doll is putting it on display rather than storing it in a trunk or blanket chest.

Many people think that because celluloid was invented in 1869, it immediately found an application in dolls and toys, but this is not true. It took decades of experimenting before celluloid was used successfully in their manufacture.  The earliest American patent relating to the design of celluloid dolls date to 1883, a full 14 years after the material was invented.  Still, even in light of early patents there is no evidence to support a doll making industry in America until after the turn of the 20^th century.   Rather, it was the German industry that paved the way for celluloid in the doll trade.

Germany:

In 1895 Frederich Bensinger, the owner of the Rhenish Gummi und Celluloidfabrik Company of Neckarau, Germany gave one of his engineers the task of creating a doll from celluloid.  That man was Robert Zeller, and by 1897 he had successfully developed a method of blowing steam into tubes of celluloid that were placed in a doll shaped metal mold.  The process was so successful the company went into full scale production.  In 1899 the Rhenish firm registered their now famous turtle trademark and named their doll making division Schildkrot — the German word for turtle.

At first parents were skeptical about buying celluloid dolls for their children because it had a reputation for being dangerously flammable — which it was.  Furthermore, at the time celluloid dolls were no less expensive than porcelain or bisque dolls, so consumers were hesitant to pay for something they knew little about.  Eventually, however, its lightweight durability and realistic appearance won out and celluloid baby dolls became popular.

Within a year, several well known porcelain doll manufacturers began to hire the Rhenish Gummi-und Celluloidfabrik Company to mold doll heads for them.  By the early part of the 1900s, J.D.Kestner, Buschow & Beck and Kammer & Reinhardt were all purchasing molded, undecorated doll heads, arms and legs from Schildkrot, and finishing them in their own factories. Often celluloid shoulder plate dolls from J.D. Kestner and the Kammer & Reinhardt Company will bear two trademarks; their own company logo combined with the Schildkrot turtle mark.

France:

In France things were quite different.  Celluloid had been widely used in the manufacture of ornamental hair combs and jewelry since the first European celluloid factory had been built in Stains, near St. Denis in 1875.  But it wasn’t until after the turn of the 20^th century that celluloid dolls and toys began to make their appearance.

The most famous of French manufacturers was Petitcollin, originally founded in Oyonnax in 1860 for the manufacture of combs.  Petitcollin began to fabricate celluloid in 1898 and registered their trademark, the profile of an eagle head, in 1901.  They began to fabricate celluloid dolls and toys in 1907, with the  earliest advertisements appearing in 1909.

Petitcollin became well known for its boy doll, Petit Colin, which was introduced in 1924.  The success of this baby doll was a catalyst for a whole cast of characters, so that by the mid-1930s Colette, Coline, Colinette and Parisette dolls joined the family and became  just as popular as their older brother Colin.

Petitcollin also made a large number of small jointed standing dolls which were finished with mohair wigs and dressed as souvenirs in regional costume.  The firm is still in business today but discontinued use of celluloid in 1957 when the material was replaced with a non-flammable substitute.    

Other French firms which enjoyed great success in doll and toy making were Societe Industrielle De Celluloid, (SIC in diamond trademark, 1906 through 1927) and the  G. Convert & Company, (windmill trademark accompanied by word Convert) which began advertising a variety of dolls and animal toys in 1913. 

Societe Nobel Francaise was formed in  1927, registering their trademark, SNF in diamond in 1928.  The firm absorbed the Convert company and used their molds to make a variety of  animal toys, as well as beautiful fashion dolls ranging from 5 ½ inches to 10 inches, which were dressed in fancy costume and sold as souvenirs.  The most interesting of SNF baby dolls are toddlers who have mohair wigs and glass eye mechanisms that allow the eyes to open and close as well as shift side to side.

French Celluloid Dolls at the Paris Antique Show, 2005

Japan:

Most Japanese celluloid doll makers focused on mass producing small, inexpensive carnival- type dolls, so it isn‘t very often that collectors find good quality sturdy examples of babies or toddlers.   There were a few firms, however,  that made a limited quantity, and although these cannot compare with the high quality of French and German baby dolls from the same period, they do deserve to be recognized. 

Japanese Doll

Sekiguchi was one of the largest and most prolific manufacturers of celluloid toys in Japan.  The company was founded in 1918 by Moto and Tomokichi Sekiguchi for the sole purpose of manufacturing and exporting dolls to the United States.  Their most recognized creation is a variation of the Kewpie, which they called Cupid.  Later, during the 1920s, the naked carnival type Boopie doll became popular.  Often these were decorated with brightly colored feathers or crepe paper costumes and exported in great number to the United States where they sold for mere pennies. 

On occasion, sturdy Japanese toddler or baby dolls can be found with the trademarks of Sekiguchi (a three lobed flower) the Royal Company, Ltd. (a fleur-de-lis) and Sato Sankichi (SS inside rhombus).   Often these are made in the likeness of  Baby John, a doll which became so popular it was produced in a variety of sizes by a number of different manufacturers.

American Dolls:

In America, where celluloid was invented in 1869, the doll and toy industry had a slow beginning.  An assignor to the Celluloid Novelty Company patented several designs for dolls during the 1880s, but to date no examples have been found that support any evidence of production.  It appears, rather, that the Germans dominated the toy market in the United States up until the onset of World War I, when trade ceased.  It was then, out of opportunity and necessity, that America entered the celluloid toy making industry.

In 1914 the Viscoloid Company of Leominster, Massachusetts (founded in 1901) hired a German artist named Paul Kramme, who  began to design toy molds for the firm.  Viscoloid became prolific in their manufacture of  small figural dolls and toys up until after DuPont bought the company in 1925.  Although not as common, Viscoloid  also produced a limited number of  jointed baby dolls measuring between 10 inches and 16 ½ inches.  Today these may be found trademarked with the words  Made In USA, and sometimes accompanied by an intertwined VCO logo or a number. 

Little is known of the Marks Brothers Company, of Boston, but according to Coleman’s Encyclopedia of Dolls, a firm named Marks & Knoring Company, was producing dolls with celluloid faces between 1915 and 1917.  The Marks Brothers Company made its appearance in the sales catalogues beginning in 1918  until the mid-1920s.  Marks Brothers’ socket and shoulder plate heads in celluloid can be found, on occasion, bearing the shield trademark of the firm or the words, Marks Bros. Boston. 

The Parsons-Jackson Company,  of Cleveland, Ohio  (originally a celluloid cuff and collar manufacturer) patented a unique baby doll in 1914 out of their brand of celluloid called Biskoline.  Today these dolls, which bear a trademark of a standing stork and the words Parsons-Jackson Co. Cleveland, OHIO, U.S.A. on the back,  can be found for between $75-$175 depending on condition.

Today celluloid dolls are gaining recognition in the collecting field, not only for their historical significance but also because they are valuable antiques and collectibles.  No longer are celluloid dolls relegated to a place of disrespect, or considered impractical and cheap.  Rather they are being appreciated for their distinctive beauty and the special qualities that make them unique.  

Julie Pelletier Robinson, plastics historian, and author of Celluloid — A Collector’s Reference and Value Guide,  has just completed a second book, Celluloid Dolls, Toys and Playthings, which is scheduled to be released in the fall of 2005.