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Soft Toy
1970-1978 (manufactured)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Soft toy 'golly' figure of fur fabric and chennile. There is a hexagonal label attached. The toy has been burn tested down its back, with a smaller amount on the front.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Fur fabric, chennile |
| Brief description | 'Golly', Chad Valley, England, 1970s |
| Physical description | Soft toy 'golly' figure of fur fabric and chennile. There is a hexagonal label attached. The toy has been burn tested down its back, with a smaller amount on the front. |
| Dimensions |
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| Production type | Mass produced |
| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Credit line | Given by the Palitoy Company |
| Object history | The original golliwog was a central character in a series of books by Bertha and Florence Upton published between 1895 and 1909. Florence, the illustrator of the stories, based the golliwog on a doll she had acquired in the US in the 1880s. The appearance of this doll was influenced by the Blackface performance tradition. From the late 19th century until the 1960s, the golliwog flourished as a toy. Its image featured on toys, games, textiles and ceramics and was also used by food companies. From the 1970s the golliwog’s popularity began to wane as many British people felt that it promoted racial stereotypes. Part of the Palitoy Archive |
| Production | Attribution note: numbered tested sample Reason For Production: retail Manufactured before Chad Valley merged with Palitoy under General Mills UK in 1979. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | B.1381-1999 |
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| Record created | November 7, 2000 |
| Record URL |
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