Extremely Rare French Bisque Art Character Doll, Albert Marque, Provenance
Lot #34
22" (56 cm.) Bisque socket head composed from unique four-part mold, elongated throat, full cheeks and well-defined temples and chin, blue glass eyes, painted curly lashes with darker lashes at bottom eye rim, brushstroked and feathered brows, accented eye corners, high forehead, distinctively-shaped nose with rounded tip, closed mouth with shaded and accented lips, distinctively-shaped ears, pierced ear holes, original ash-white mohair wig and pate, uniquely designed composition body whose torso tapers from narrow shoulders to broad hips, undefined waist, elongated composition upper arms, bisque forearms with attached bisque ball-joints at the elbows, separately-sculpted fingers, wide upper thighs, elongated lower legs with shapely calves, slender ankles, elongated feet, wearing antique woolen dress with red satin lace collared blouse, antique bonnet, original shoes with Alart label, stockings, and undergarment with the cloth label of "Margaine-Lacroix". Condition: generally excellent. Marks: A. Marque (incised signature on head) 50 (red ink lettered on head) Margaine Lacroix 19 Boulevard Haussman Paris (cloth tag on slip) Paulette Louis XV (pencil label on foot). Comments: French, circa 1916, the portrait doll was sculpted by the esteemed French artist, Albert Marque (1872-1939) and presented on a unique body made for this model only. The doll, made in an edition of only 100 dolls, was introduced in the exclusive Parisian couturiere of Margaine-Lacroix in 1916, and purchased by the Berger family of Paris. The doll, which remained in the Berger family for 86 years was presented at auction by Theriault's in 2002; it has been in the hands of only one collector since that time. Value Points: superbly preserved example of the very rare doll, of which only 100 were made, with exceptional quality of sculpting and bisque, and with complexion and painting that is superb in their execution. The body is impeccable, the wig is original, and the costume bears original boutique label. When the doll was first auctioned, a note from the original owner, Emilienne Berger of Boulevard Victor, Paris was included, noting, "My memories concerning the origin of the doll are distant. My father who carried home the doll when I was very little, died a few years after the Great War. Evidently I was not allowed to play with this doll which was very fragile and very large for me, and that represented to my mother a sort of relic. The doll, during my young years, rested in a box at the bottom of the bookcase in the salon. I had to content myself with playing with smaller dolls that I received each year with my subscription to Semaine de Suzette. This doll, a little mysterious, came to live with me in time and it is with great regret that I am separating from it. I have no one to leave it with. My dearest hope is to see it adopted by someone who will love and take care of her."
