dolls

A doll is a toy often made in the likeness of a human baby or child, though they are also made in the likeness of human adults, animals, or fictional creatures (e.g., trolls or smurfs). Dolls can be made out of almost any material, but both cloth and plastic are popular in doll-making.

Use

Dolls are often intended as toys for children but other uses of dolls include as a keepsake or collectible item for any age, namely older children to adults. However, dolls are also used because of their cultural significance, possibly for use in a ceremony or ritual, or even as a physical representation of a deity, these uses of course go along with a simpler, a doll is another way for decoration. As time has gone on, it's become more important for dolls to be as lifelike as possible, and these dolls can be used for professional use, (see anatomically correct doll), or as sex toys (see sex doll). Artists' mannequins are also known as "artists' dolls." Dolls with action figure-like articulation are sometimes referred to as "action dolls^[1]."

History

Dolls have been around for far longer than most would think, archaeological evidence placing dolls as foremost candidate for oldest known toy, having been found in Egyptian tombs which date to as early as 2000 BC. In Egypt, as well as Greece and Rome, it was common to find them in the graves of children, these were mainly made from wood, however, among the wealthier families, pottery dolls were also found.

Many suggest that dolls were around even before 2000 BC, going further back to prehistoric times, and were probably made from materials such as clay, mud, fur, wood, etc.

Composition

Dolls are typically made of the following materials.

• Bisque
• Bisqueloid
• Celluloid
• Clay
• Cloth (see also rag doll)
• Composition
• Corn husks
• Paper
• Plastic
• Polymer-Clay
• Porcelain
• Resin
• Rubber
• Vinyl
• Wax
• Wood

A large model made of a hard material is called a statue. A doll or animal model of soft material is also called a plush toy or plushie.

Famous types of dolls

Toy Dolls

• Action figures
  • Action Man or Action Woman
• American Girl
• Ball-jointed doll
  • Super Dollfie
  • Dollfie
• Betsy Wetsy
• Blythe
• Bobblehead doll
• Cabbage Patch Kids
• Celebrity doll
  • Britney Spears Doll
  • Christina Aguilera Doll
  • Spice Girls Dolls
  • Madonna Doll
• Chatty Cathy
• Cindy Smart
• Dollikins (also called Action Girl)
• Fashion dolls
  • Barbie and Ken
  • Bratz
• Gigi
• Jumeau Dolls
• Kewpie doll
• Paper Doll
• Pinocchio

• Porcelain Doll
• Raggedy Ann and Andy
• Société Française de Fabrication de Bébés et Jouets
• Strawberry Shortcake
• Teddy bear
• Tiny Tears
• Troll doll
• Waldorf Doll
• Ugly doll

Other dolls

• Anatomically correct doll
• Autopsy Babies
• Chucky, a Good Guy doll in the horror film Child's Play
• Dollz - pixel art dolls used for online decoration.
• Kachina dolls
• Matryoshka doll
• Reborn Doll
• Sex doll
• The Test Card F clown doll
• Voodoo doll
• Worry dolls

Action figures

Dolls are distinguished from action figures, which are generally of plastic or semi metallic construction and poseable to some extent, and exist largely for the purpose of marketing the television shows or films which feature the characters they are often modeled after. Modern action figures, such as Action Man, are often marketed towards boys, and dolls towards girls.

Events related to dolls

Festivals

• Hinamatsuri (Japanese doll festival)

References

External links