$2,100
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Description
7" (18 cm.) h. 10" circ. at nose. Being a shoulder head of light wood or wood composite with attached sculpted long ringlet curls and two rows of beads at the throat; with sculpted hollow-opening for face to allow one of four faces which are sculpted on the interior wooden form to be revealed. The faces, with deeply-sculpted features having natural wood finish, rotate on a horizontal rod, and include smiling, sleeping, grimacing, and laughing expressions. Condition: generally excellent. Comments: Dominico Checkeni patented the design in 1866, patent number 52782, describing his invention as "Fancy Doll" and noting that his invention is "making the dolls' head with four faces and suspending it in the wig-frame in such a manner that the head may be revolved vertically, so as to being either of the four faces in front at pleasure". The patent was later re-assigned to Georg N. Thompson of New Haven, Connecticut. Another example of this patented head with variations of design is in The Strong Museum, and shown in The Collector's Encyclopedia of Dolls by Coleman, page 239. Value Points: few examples are known to exist of this early American patented doll.