Today as we shop for dolls, the label “Made in China” is ever present but the Oriental influence in the doll world was seen much earlier.

In 1851, Edmund Lindner, a prominent doll merchant from Sonneberg, Germany, visited the London World Exhibition. One of the doll displays that caught his eye was a group of dolls from the Orient. These dolls, unlike any others seen by Linder, were different. Most of the dolls previously produced in Germany and in France represented ladies. These Oriental dolls had youthful faces and represented young children and infants. Read More +