21" French Bisque Smiling Poupee "Miss Minnie" by Leon Casimir Bru,with Provenance

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21" (53 cm.) Bisque swivel head on kid-edged bisque shoulder plate,almond-shaped blue glass enamel eyes,dark eyeliner,painted lashes,feathered brows,aquiline-shaped nose with accented nostrils,closed mouth with outlined lips that are upturned at the side in an enigmatic smile,pierced ears,light brown mohair wig over cork pate,French kid poupee body with square-cut collarette,gusset-jointing,wooden arms with dowel-jointing at shoulders,elbows and wrists,wearing original costume of black velvet and taffeta,with matching bonnet,silk parasol,undergarments labeled "Miss Minnie",blue woolen stockings and leather shoes with silk rosette marked C.M. Condition: generally excellent,few body patches,two missing finger tips. Marks: Depose (forehead) D (head and shoulder plate). Comments: Leon Casimir Bru,his 1872 deposed model of a gently-smiling lady,inspired by the beloved Empress Eugenie. Value Points: accompanying the very beautiful and sought-after model is historical provenance,including a photograph of the original owner as a young girl with a note "the original owner as she looked when her parents brought Miss Minnie to her from Paris",a mid-century letter from Mrs. Willis Clark,daughter of the original owner,and,notably,a tintype of Miss Minnie from her earliest days. The doll has been in the private collection of the present owner since 1952