Name: Brown Complexioned Kammer & Reinhardt #192
Made by and When: Kammer & Reinhardt, circa 1896
Material: Bisque socket head on a five-piece composition body
Marks: (On the head) 192
Height: 9 inches
Hair, Eyes, Mouth: Clothes: Black curly mohair wig, brown glass sleep eyes (which are now stationary), open mouth with three upper teeth
Clothes: Wears a period-appropriate gold silk dress with black lace overlay and collar, gold silk hat, an off-white (or yellowed) eyelet half-slip, another off-white lace-trimmed half-slip, off-white lace-trimmed pantalettes, and a gray glass-beaded necklace
Other: The Kammer & Reinhardt (K&R) doll company was founded in 1885 by the sculptor Ernst Kammer and the salesman Franz Reinhardt in Waltershausen, Thuringia, Germany. Kammer & Reinhardt designed their dolls’ bodies and bisque heads, but most of the heads were manufactured by the German company Simon & Halbig (which is why many dolls bear both companies’ marks on the dolls’ necks) as K&R did not have their own porcelain factory (Fab Tin Toys). “Their earliest dolls are only marked with a mold number” (Doll Reference). This doll’s only marks are the number 192.
Provenance: Named Chloe Van Buren by its first owner (Charlotte Woolley Johnstone a.k.a. Aunt Lottie) in 1891-1896, this German-made Kammer & Reinhardt doll was donated to the museum by Rev. Marion Peglar VanLoo in April 2022. It arrived with provenance written by the second owner, Aunt Polly (Polly Johnstone Parmalee, niece of Charlotte). The letter of provenance is enclosed in an envelope dated July 24, 1925, with the letter addressed to Nadine Peglar (Nadine Johnstone Peglar, the third owner and grandchild of Charlotte, niece of Polly, and mother of Rev. Vanloo). Nadine gave the doll to her daughter, Rev. VanLoo, in 1986 making her the fourth owner. After Rev. VanLoo’s donation to the museum, DeBeeGee’s Virtual Black Doll Museum became the doll’s fifth owner.
On April 22, 2022, Chloe Van Buren turned 126 years old and has lived 26 years beyond her predicted lifespan of 100 years.
Photos of the third owner (Rev. VanLoo’s mother) and an illustration of the doll’s head number (192) were also included with the doll (not shown). The following faded handwritten statement is on the back of the provenance-containing envelope, “On Apr. 22, 1959, Chloe is 63 years old.” That statement verifies 1896 as the doll’s approximate year of manufacture.
Gallery
#192 mold.
References:
Fab Tin Toys / Kammer Reinhardt
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