Vintage Ball-Jointed Dolls

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Ball-jointed dolls (BJDs) are dolls with movable limbs that fit to their bodies with ball-and-socket joints. Each segment of a BJD is internally linked using a piece of elastic string or a metal spring. Stringing BJDs is a delicate art, requiring...
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Ball-jointed dolls (BJDs) are dolls with movable limbs that fit to their bodies with ball-and-socket joints. Each segment of a BJD is internally linked using a piece of elastic string or a metal spring. Stringing BJDs is a delicate art, requiring the elastic to be loose enough to allow for free positioning of the limbs, but tight enough that they won’t move on their own. Overly tight stringing often results in friction that can degrade the paint on doll bodies. Prior to the development of ball-jointed dolls, different techniques were used to make dolls move realistically. Antique dolls with porcelain heads and hands often had bodies made from fabric or leather, giving their limbs some flexibility during play. During the 18th and 19th centuries, dolls with wooden limbs were sometimes articulated using peg joints, which allowed the arms and legs to rotate in a single direction like a puppet. Dolls made with ball joints arrived in the late 19th century, as makers looked to create figures that could be posed in a more lifelike manner. Skilled woodworkers in Springfield, Vermont, pioneered various technical improvements as they turned their attention to making detailed wooden dolls. In 1879, the Jointed Doll Company of Springfield secured a patent for a 12-inch wooden doll with ball-and-socket joints, an innovation that allowed their toys greater flexibility during play. As an advertisement for the dolls explained, “The head can turn in any direction, the arms can be placed at any angle. It will stand alone, sit up or kneel down.” Interestingly, this ad proposed leaving the doll unclothed, suggesting that small children would be entranced by the free movement of its limbs. The Jointed Doll Company typically marked its products with a black band around the waist, reading “Improved Jointed Doll Patent April 29th 1879.” Though born of wood, ball-jointed dolls were frequently produced with bodies made from composition—a mix of sawdust, paper pulp, and...
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