Pair, French Wooden Court Doll Depicting Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI

18 Watching

Live Auction

13" (33 cm.) and 16". Each has carved wooden one-piece head and flat-backed torso, oval face and elongated throat, sculpted groove-defined hair with elaborate arrangement of rolled curls (she with upswept braid at center back of head and he with extended periwig with black bow), deeply-defined eye sockets, black upper eyeliner, blue eyes, blushed eye shadow, closed mouth, she with generously modeled bosom and defined female genitalia on torso, he with tinted chin stubble and defined male genitalia, cloth upper arms, wooden lower arms, wooden legs with loose pin jointing at hips and knees, she with painted green shoes and he with wooden shoes with gold buckles. Condition: generally excellent, original finish, he is missing curl on one side. Comments: French, late 1700s, the dolls are believed to depict Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI, each wearing original costume, she in beautifully detailed original low-bodice gown and he wearing original brocade silk jacket and pants, lace jabot. Value Points: uniquely-sculpted dolls, each one of a kind, with original finish. Value Points: the uniquely-sculpted dolls with extraordinary detail of coiffure have original finish and are wearing original costumes. Ex-Mathes collection, the dolls are featured in the book The Rose Unfolds by Rosalie Whyel and Susan Hedrick, page 14 and in the book Les Poupees Royale by Francois Theimer, page 54.