Antique Apple Head Skookum Doll, 11 Inches, Circa 1915-20, Extremely Rare
This is the cream of the crop when it comes to Skookum Indian dolls! This is an extremely rare APPLE HEAD Skookum Indian mother and papoose more than 100 years old! Their heads were fashioned out of apples which dried and darkened into the faces seen here. This type of doll head was so fragile and sometimes rotted that its a wonder that any of them survived at all! They rarely come into the marketplace because their survival numbers are so small. This one is approximately 11 inches tall. Skookum apple head dolls were originally made by Mary McAboy at her home in Montana beginning in 1913 after her husband died of tuberculosis. She patented the dolls in 1914. The dolls she fashioned from apples and dressed in Indian costumes were an immediate success, so much so that she moved to mass production techniques within a year. She partnered with the H. Tammen Company in Los Angeles and her dolls were distributed in the east by Arrow Novelty Company in New York City. When making the apple head dolls, Mary would pinch the apples into faces as they dried and add the pins for the eyes. Bodies were made of blocks of wood or stuffed muslin sacks. This doll appears to have a soft body under the garments, and sticks of whittled wood for her legs. This doll has a partial oval printed label on the bottom of her left foot. Various labels were used on the dolls throughout the years, and the color and shape of this label identifies it as produced by H. The missing part of this label would have had the patent date (February 17, 1914) and New York Denver Los Angeles. This particular type of label was in use by the Tammen Company from approximately 1915 to the early 1920s. This dolls boots were molded of composition material. This was probably one of the earliest Skookums to have composition footwear, a feature that became commonplace by the early 1920s. This antique apple head Skookum mother and child have glass beads for eyes. The mother has composition footwear, a long cotton skirt that has faded colors of gold and green, an underskirt of blue cotton, and a bright yellow cotton kerchief tied around her head. A red cotton material serves as the top of her dress and also that of her baby. She is fully wrapped in a flannel blanket in geometric shapes of grey, red and white. Her braided hair and that of her papoose is brown lightweight yarn. One braid has a silk fastener at the end. She wears a double strand of glass beads around her neck. This Skookum doll is a true survivor! She would be a welcome addition to anyones collection, or a stand-alone representation of one of the earliest versions of the Skookum doll. Skookum, by the way, was a name Mary patented to use for the dolls in 1917. To the Northwest Chinook Indians it meant excellent. Bring this mother and baby Skookum into your home for a truly unique collectible. No two were ever made exactly alike! Thanks for your interest! The item “Antique Apple Head Skookum Doll, 11 Inches, Circa 1915-20, Extremely Rare” is in sale since Monday, October 14, 2019. This item is in the category “Dolls & Bears\Dolls\By Type\Cultures & Ethnicities”. The seller is “sheri543″ and is located in Mesquite, Nevada. This item can be shipped to United States.
- Product Type: Doll
- Brand: H.H.Tammen Co.
- Modified Item: No
- Ethnicity: Native American
- Featured Refinements: Indian Doll
- Material: Wood, Cloth, Dried Apples
- Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
- Doll Size: 11 in
- Features: Antique
- Packaging: Without Packaging
