Archaeological evidence shows that the earliest forms of dolls appeared long before the written word. In the Upper Paleolithic period (c. 30,000 BCE), so-called \u201cVenus figurines\u201d like the famous Venus of Willendorf<\/em> (c. 28,000\u201325,000 BCE) were crafted from limestone, bone, or ivory. While many scholars argue that these were fertility idols, some researchers suggest they may have also served as the earliest dolls\u2014objects to be held, cherished, or even played with by prehistoric people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe lines between idol, amulet, and toy are blurred in the archaeological record; what today we call a \u2018doll\u2019 could have had ritual, magical, or simply playful purposes in antiquity.\u201d The Egyptians took doll-making to another level, fashioning dolls not just for ritual but for entertainment and education. Dolls dating as far back as 2000 BCE have been discovered in Egyptian tombs. Made of wood, clay, or ivory, many had movable limbs and elaborate hair made from string or beads\u2014precursors to today\u2019s \u201cart dolls.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The so-called \u201cpaddle dolls\u201d (c. 2000 BCE), found in the tombs at Thebes, are prime examples. While some were clearly funerary objects, others were made for the living. Their exaggerated features and stylized bodies have led many art historians to argue that these were more than mere toys\u2014they were, in a sense, small works of art.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEgyptian paddle dolls, with their attention to form and ornament, are among the earliest examples of the doll as an artistic object.\u201d In ancient Greece and Rome, dolls (called plangon<\/em> or pupa<\/em>) were often made of clay, terracotta, or even wax. Girls played with them, but, interestingly, at the threshold of adulthood, they would dedicate their childhood dolls to goddesses like Artemis or Venus\u2014a symbolic act marking the end of childhood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some of these dolls had jointed limbs and fine features, crafted with a level of care that can only be called artistic. The Greeks and Romans valued craftsmanship, and the dolls that survive today are testament to a culture that appreciated both function and beauty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe exquisite modeling of ancient dolls reflects the intersection of play and art in antiquity.\u201d It would be anachronistic to call these ancient objects \u201cart dolls\u201d in the modern sense, since the concept of art itself has changed radically over time. But what is certain: even in antiquity, some dolls were made not just for play, but to inspire, to teach, to comfort, and to serve as objects of beauty\u2014roles that define the art doll to this day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Source of the image: Figurine with articulated limbs – public domain – https:\/\/www.metmuseum.org\/art\/collection\/search\/254514<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Antiquity \u2013 Where Art and Idol Meet The Oldest Art Dolls: Prehistoric Idols or Playthings? Archaeological evidence shows that the earliest forms of dolls appeared long before the written word. In the Upper Paleolithic period (c. 30,000 BCE), so-called \u201cVenus figurines\u201d like the famous Venus of Willendorf (c. 28,000\u201325,000 BCE) were crafted from limestone, bone, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1859,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[63],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1857","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-history-of-art-dolls"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cocoleta.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1857","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cocoleta.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cocoleta.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cocoleta.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cocoleta.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1857"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/cocoleta.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1857\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1861,"href":"https:\/\/cocoleta.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1857\/revisions\/1861"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cocoleta.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cocoleta.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1857"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cocoleta.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1857"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cocoleta.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1857"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
\u2014 Dr. Mary-Ann Lund, Art and Play: Ancient Figurines in Context<\/em>, 2018<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nAncient Egypt: Where Dolls Became Art<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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\u2014 The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Art of Ancient Egypt<\/em> (source<\/a>)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nGreece and Rome: From Toys to Keepsakes<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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\u2014 Susan Langdon, Art and Identity in Ancient Greece<\/em>, Cambridge University Press, 2008<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nWere They Really Art Dolls?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nSources Consulted:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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