Name: Unnamed Leo-Moss-Type Doll
Made by and When: Rubin Quintano ca. 1990s
Material: Composition or papier-mâché head, shoulder plate, and limbs; black stuffed-cloth body
Marks: R.Q. is written in red paint on the back of the shoulder plate.
Height: 15-1/2 inches
Hair, Eyes, Mouth: Sculpted black hair has a short, curly texture with the addition of a sculpted loop of hair on the top left side of the head through which an aged fabric ribbon is tied. Inset brown eyes, down-turned lips, and frowning eyebrows create a sad expression without the signature Leo-Moss-doll tears.
Clothes: Wears an aged off-white muslin dress and a red and white large check pinafore with aged off-white pantalettes.
Other: Little is known about doll artist, Rubin Quintano, who made one-of-a-kind dolls during the 1990s in the fashion of late 19th-century doll maker Leo Moss. Quintano’s dolls possibly date back to the 1970s or 1980s, but 1990s examples have been documented. His dolls are notable for their tightly coiled sculpted hair, down-turned mouths, big brown eyes, and sometimes tears. They can often be mistaken in pictures for authentic Leo Moss dolls. The smooth texture of his dolls’ faces and extremities is a major difference between Quintano’s Moss-type dolls and authentic Leo Moss dolls. Quintano’s dolls usually bear his initials and/or numbers that precede and follow the initials.
See another Quintano doll that is installed in this museum here and five more in a Black Doll Collecting blog post here.
Gallery
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