Not currently on display at the V&A

Paper Doll

1832 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

These remarkable paper dolls illustrate fashionable, fancy, working class and occupational dress from the second half of the 1820s to the early 1830s. They complement a manuscript (T.360-1998), '>The History of Miss Wildfire'. This morality tale charts through the paper dolls the downfall of a 'fashion-stricken' young lady. After the death of her father, Miss Wildfire descends into poverty and is forced to earn her keep as a lacemaker. In the end she is 'redeemed' through marriage and conversion to Quakerism. The manuscript and presumably the dolls were given to Mary Wilson (1811-73) 'from her affectionate sister' Anne Sanders Wilson in October 1832.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Watercolour painted on card
Brief description
Paper doll, watercolour on card, made by Anne Sanders Wilson, London, 1832
Physical description
Paper doll, watercolour on card, in a rural dress with cloak hood up.
Credit line
Given by Gillian M. R. Winter
Object history
Two sets of slightly different paper dolls each with one hat and eight different outfits (T.361:1 to 20-1998). One is in the style of the late 1820s and the other early 1830s.

The dolls and the manuscript (T.360:1 to 3-1998) were made for Mary Wilson by her sister Anne in October 1832.
Summary
These remarkable paper dolls illustrate fashionable, fancy, working class and occupational dress from the second half of the 1820s to the early 1830s. They complement a manuscript (T.360-1998), '>The History of Miss Wildfire'. This morality tale charts through the paper dolls the downfall of a 'fashion-stricken' young lady. After the death of her father, Miss Wildfire descends into poverty and is forced to earn her keep as a lacemaker. In the end she is 'redeemed' through marriage and conversion to Quakerism. The manuscript and presumably the dolls were given to Mary Wilson (1811-73) 'from her affectionate sister' Anne Sanders Wilson in October 1832.
Collection
Accession number
T.361:11-1998

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Record createdJuly 5, 2011
Record URL
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