New Images for 2005 & 2006, page 2!
On this page, I have gathered photographs of children with Japanese dolls, some private, some commercial, and Japanese doll illustrations from children's books. These include Japanese doll references in primers and ABC books., and illustrations presented as stand-alone decorations or related to stories or verse in children's "Annuals" or anthologies. These include two "comic-strip" style stories about Japanese dolls.
Three pictures on this page are by Rosa Petherick.
Click for a larger image or a page about the item.
ca. 1890, US
Mounted photograph, sepia, DeYoung's studio, Broadway, New York City.
The doll may have been given to the girl to help her hold still for the photo, or it may have been her own. I am guessing at the date from her costume.
ca. 1910?, US ?
Photograph, sepia, no markings
Small girl with table sized for her on which are a Japanese doll, a small house, a mechanical monkey, etc.
1900 ca., Japan?
Postcard, photograph, tinted
No printing on front or back. Western girl in complete Japanese getup, with parasol and geta and large ichimatsu, against a Japanese background. Might be a souvenir portrait taken in Japan.
ca. 1900, Australia
Postcard
This is clearly related to the photo postcard "Washday"--presumably they are #2 and #3 of a series on a day in the lif of a mother of dolls.
1906 ?, France
Postcard, Photograph, tinted
Little girl with a couple dozen ichimatsu, and hina doll heads in her hair, surrounded by fans.
1914, Germany, mailed to UK
Postcard, photo, tinted
Shows an ice-show with a Japanese doll, triplets, tweedle-dee twins, Punch, etc. Writer saw the show. NB June 1914, just before the war.
1891, US
Illustration, either by G. Hentschel or by Florence Hardwin, in Little Rosy Cheeks, pubished by Youths' Publishing Co.,1891
Wordless comic strip of sorts about a doll family. We see the themes of introducing the new doll to a doll family including a Japanese., and of a dolls' picnic. (no Gollywog)
1896, US
Pittypat and Tippytoe by Eugene Field
published D.W. Caskey, Jr
This illustrated poem about a funny-looking "tea-chest dolly" faces an illustration of a Japanese girl and her doll, which I had collected separately as printed in a children's periodical.
1897, US
Two illustrations by Alice Kellogg Tyler for Singing Verses for Children, by Lydia Avery Coonley , music by Frederick W. Root and others (MacMillan, 1897).
This beautiful book's Table of Contents shows a baby and an older child, who is affectionately grasping a male ichimatsu, with a pull-toy for the baby, and a cat.. The final illustration shows the baby in different clothing, the child still with the Japanese doll, and a dog and parrot in conversation.
Thanks for the chance to photograph this book to the Baldwin Collection of the University of Florida Libraries, which is engaged in its own project to put historical children's literature online.
ca. 1890, UK
Raphael Tuck publishers
Beautiful large (15 inch) stand-up figure of Japanese girl with Western face. She is holding a Japanese doll so it stands on a little Chinese table and giving it a drink from a teacup.
189-? UK
Dean's "Diploma series" (presumably for school prizes?). a 12pp large-format booklet.
This is the only image with dolls. All the pictures and verses are fanciful, not well drawn but well designed in an art nouveau "Japanese" style.
ca. 1900
Picture from a slim but large format booklet for children called Christmas Morning, printed by Raphael Tuck and Sons in "Father Tuck's Kris Kringle Series."
The idea of the Japanese doll kissing a blonde doll is evident in some other items of the time, particularly a McLaughlin's folding paper doll.
ca. 1900, US
Pauline and the Matches and Envious Minnie
no date, author or illus; McLoughlin Bros. New York,
This little book contains two tales in verse of the "Struwelpeter" type, in which naughty children have terrible things happen to them. The story of Minnie is introduced with a line drawing of her envying her little sister's Japanese doll. The satirical point may be that Minnie is envious of items not worth envy (since she probably has fancier dolls herself, being older).
190-, UK
Illustration by Helen Jackson, in Tiny Toddlers by E. M.Chettle (Raphael Tuck, pub.) entirely illustrated by Jackson.
Illustrates a poem about the child getting paint on the doll. Poem does not specify a Japanese doll.
ca. 1900, US
Little Folks' Painting Book
no date or illus., McLoughlin Bros. NY
This is a nice production, with color pictures facing line version copies for the child to paint. The cover shows a blonde girl in a pinafore and cap instructing five dolls, four of whom are Western and one of which is Japanese.
1910, US
Ideal Dollie Drawing and Painting Book
1910, K. Garman, Ideal Book Builders, Chicago
This is one doll on a page of doll models for a child to copy. The book also includes illustrations which appeared separately in Garman's Moving Picture Dollies, including Japanese dolls; these are in color facing a line drawing version for the to paint.
Father Tuck's "The Field and Farm" A-B-C Series.
No. 5522 Raphael Tuck & Sons, Ltd.
ca. 1890, for a Boston market since it includes advertising for Filene's Dept. Store
E stands for the elegant doll from Japan;This verse is interesting in a couple of ways; it would be easier to use the Japanese doll for the letter J (with which fewer items begin), but instead it is used for the letter E, and the doll is Elegant (not ugly or strange). The doll is also of course presented as a toy "in town," found in an urban child's life.
She's holding her sunshade but where is her fan?
This scan is courtesy of Timothy Forry,
E M Maurice Books,
914-693-1182, g
eneral antiquarian books,
especially strong in early
20th C. & Late 19th C.
children's and illustrated.
Email EMmaurice2@aol.com
to receive periodic
eLists of recent acquisitions.
1896, US
W. B. McConkey Co.
Letters are represented in the ABC by the names of children.
V is for Veda, the queer little tot
From the Japanese land far away;
But she loves her dear dolly, as all babies do,
If she cannot think just what to say.
Many of the illustrations seem to be drawn from other sources (and were re-used in the next item, andother McConkey ABC). This image (of a boy with a doll, not a girl as the poem implies) also appears in a postcard published by Theo. Strecker in Germany.
1898, US
Illus. for the letter O (W. B. Conkey 1898)
O is for Ora and Ollie, looking at a queer doll in a Christmas stocking.
The doll they are looking at seems to be a turbanned Black doll, but a Japanese doll (notoriously queer) is hanging out of another stocking.
1901, UK
Illustration by Henry Mayer for the letter J
Text by T. W. Crosland, pictures by Henry Mayer. "Dumpy Books" series (Grant Richards,1901).
"They dress themselves just like their dolls." Verse mentions tiny feet but costume is accurate.
Mayer was the author/illustrator of The Adventures of a Japanese Doll
1903 (owner's inscription), UK
Raphael Tuck publishers; Father Tuck's Ever Welcome Series
"J stands for the Jam that doll Jappy delights."
Blond little boy feeding doll out of a big pot.
1914
A LITTLE BOOK OF WELL-KNOWN TOYS
by Jenness M. Braden
pictures by Margaret Hittle
Rand McNally & Company
This book is meant as an early reader but is valuable for its many illustrations of toys, divided into categories such as "toys that are like people," "toys that are like animals," "musical toys," "balls." The Japanese doll has two pages, one where it sits alone and is called Sitz, the other where it is depicted with a friend.
Interestingly, as in the next primer, "Jap" is separated out as a syllable. However, it is not presented as a word,
1935, Australia
NSW Reading Primer
Alfred James Kent1935
Doll is correctly described as male and rhymes with lap.
1920 ca., UK
Illustration by H. C. Marsh Lambert,
Ward, Lock & Co (repr. 1985)
Very ethnically detailed "Japanese Lullaby " refers to the mother bringing toys to the child while it sleeps.
ca. 1900, UK
Mundo dos Niños (Child Life in All Nations) book cover
This charming picture is signed "Florence Hardy." It is the cover of the Spanish edition of a book that was also published in the UK and US, with illustrated chapters about children of various countries.
ca. 1900, UK
illustrations by Rosa Petherick
Mundo dos Niños (Child Life in All Nations)
Rosa Petherick signed a number of the illustrations to the Japanese chapter of this book. (The Spanish edition is missing one full-page picture which appears in the UK edition, but it did not include a doll.) She shows children at everyday games or watching a patriotic procession clutching their dolls. Amusingly, the children's dolls look just like them. Note: the two pictures here link to two different illustrations.
1911, US
Poem, published with no illustration in Santa Claus' Dolls, ed. Elizabeth Hoyt, (W. A. Wilde Co., 1911 ).
This strange doll is Suzuki.
My Aunt Fan gave her to me.
She's as queer as queer can be.
In a country called Japan
Are many children, says Aunt Fan,
Who look just like Suzuki San.
They play at games, and laugh and run
And have the jolliest kind of fun.
She has seen them, many a one.
I think Suzuki is sweet,
Even if she has bare feet.
Her straight black hair is very neat.
So I think , dear Suzuki,
We will have a dollies' tes
And you shall be the company.
1913, US (UK)
Illustration by Rosa Petherick included in Two Little Playmates (M. A. Donohue1913)
Two girls are amazed at a huge crew of live dolls, including a Japanese and a Gollywog, coming down the stairs, including a Japanese. This book is a slender collection of pictures and texts with no continuity.
See next image.
1918 ca. UK/US
Illustration by Rosa Petherick included in My Favourite Story Book (Ernest Nister/Dutton, inscribed 1918).
A good companion-piece to the image above. Santa's sack bulges with toys, including a Japanese doll and a Gollywog. This book includes two more Japanese doll illustrations (next two).
Rosa Petherick was a wonderful children's illustrator and seems to have enjoyed using a Japanese doll model; for another example, see Poor Dear Dollies.
1918 or before, UK/US
Illustration included in My Favourite Story Book (Ernest Nister/Dutton, inscribed 1918).
This comic strip style series of captioned pictures shows an oddly twisted story. A cat encounters a Japanese doll which speaks to him. Having knocked over and clawed up the doll, the cat concludes that "These foreigners are so impertinent."
The cat is drawn in a style made popular by Louis Wain in the 1890s. It is possible that this cartoon had a political resonance if it was in fact drawn during the Russo-Japanese war (1904-5).
1918 or before, UK/US
Illustration for a story, "Aunt Tabby's Gift," included in My Favourite Story Book (Ernest Nister/Dutton, inscribed 1918). Signed ASH (?).
Children gathered here include a girl holding a Japanese doll; she in the story's narrator and says "Aunt Tabby .... brought me a Japanese dolly..."
1930-35 ? UK
Illustration in Tiny Tot's Annual (Amalgamated Press). This is a stand-alone image.
No Gollywog in this doll family.
1930-35? UK
Illustration by Molly Brett in Tiny Tot's Annual (Amalgamated Press)
Molly Brett (1912-1990) was a noted illustrator and artist. This is probably an early effort. Here a Japanese and a Gollywog need bandaging.
1930-35? UK
Illustration to a poem in Teeny-Weeny's Annual by or ed. Phyl Webb (Epworth Press)
The verse does not mention a Japanese doll but focuses on the little girls' pleasure in gossip. No Gollywogs at the party, though.
1930-35? UK
Illustration to a poem in Teeny-Weeny's Annual (Epworth Press)
The verse, by Phyl Webb, does not mention a Japanese doll in particular--it depicts dolls coming alive at night to go to school, where the teacher is a Gollywog.
1930, UK
Story and picture in The Chicks' Own Annual (1930), a collection of materials from a children's illustrated periodical.
No dolls are depicted but, since the children in question are mistaken for Japanese dolls by the English children, they are depicted as very doll-like. The terms Jap/Jappy are not used in the text of the story. The title is ambiguous but certainly plays on Jappy=Japanese doll.
