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Find the Perfect Doll as a Gift or Valuable Collectible
Many people of all ages around the world today have a love affair going on with the children's toys that resemble small human beings we now call dolls. In the beginning, dolls were made for small children, usually girls and the earliest versions from prehistoric times are thought to have been toys that were crude representations of babies and small children. The earliest versions were made of very primitive materials and did not have the realistic human features that they do today. Over time, they became more realistic and more diverse and many dolls began to be representations of both sexes of adult humans instead of simply being recreations of small children.
Beginning in around 600 B.C. dolls slowly started to become more lifelike and small wooden versions from the 16th century began appearing in Europe with features like movable limbs and removable clothing. It is now believed that the early dolls were used for two primary purposes, either as playthings for children or as religious figurines for use in ritual ceremonies and burials. It wasn't until the beginning of the 19th century that these tiny human figures started becoming very realistic through the use of porcelain made by firing clay in a kiln. Obviously, the entire genre was changed forever when the makers later discovered and experimented with plastic dolls manufactured in the 1940's. Since then, the game has changed quite a bit along with the degree of complexity and realism, and today most dolls are mass-manufactured using modern materials that allow extreme degrees of realism.
Today, people of all ages appreciate and collect dolls as both playthings and items of collectible value.
However, the pastime of collecting dolls has always been more about appreciation and enjoyment, than ultimate values and now it is only the oldest and rarest dolls that are truly valuable to collectors. Nearly everyone knows that the Barbie dolls from the 1960's have high values these days, and many people are beginning to take an interest in collecting dolls as historical antiques as well as works of art. Whatever your own interest in dolls may be today, you are sure to find an interesting and enjoyable niche in the wide variety of the many different types of dolls that have been made in every country on the planet both now and in the past. There is so much variety in the dolls and other toy human figurines on the market today that there is surely something to please everyone interested in them regardless of their age, sex or level of income.