c.1905–1915 Schönau & Hoffmeister “Hanna” Bisque-Head Doll – Germany

A small German Schönau & Hoffmeister “Hanna” character doll dating from the early twentieth century, with brown-tinted bisque socket head, brown glass eyes, black wig and five-piece composition body.

Schönau & Hoffmeister "Hanna" measures approximately 170 × 70 × 60 mm. She has a brown-tinted bisque socket head with painted eyebrows and eyelashes, red painted lips and inset brown glass eyes. Her black wig is arranged high on the head. The darker complexion is an intentional feature of the doll rather than age-related discolouration; other documented Hanna examples were also produced with brown-tinted bisque, brown eyes and black mohair wigs.

The head is mounted on a small five-piece composition body, comprising the torso and separately attached arms and legs. The bent, toddler-like legs and rounded body proportions are characteristic of a young child or baby doll rather than the more elongated body of an adult-fashion doll.

She is dressed in a bright yellow fabric costume with a deep natural-fibre or raffia-style fringe around the body and thick decorative trim around the neckline. An imitation-pearl bracelet is fitted around one wrist.

The costume should not presently be described as original. Its style differs from clothing seen on other documented Hanna examples and may represent a later souvenir, cultural or fancy-dress costume. Without provenance establishing when the doll was dressed this way, it is safest to record the clothing simply as later or of unknown date.

The doll shows age-related wear to the composition body, particularly around the hands and feet, together with wear and disturbance to the wig. The yellow costume and fringe also display age and use. The bisque head appears intact in the available photographs, although examination under strong light would be required to rule out fine hairlines or old restoration conclusively.

Schönau & Hoffmeister operated the Porzellanfabrik Burggrub at Burggrub, Germany. The porcelain factory was established in 1901 by doll manufacturers Arthur Schönau and Carl Hoffmeister to produce porcelain doll heads. The company became known for bisque doll heads and used a distinctive trademark incorporating the letters S and H with PB inside a five-pointed star, the PB referring to Porzellanfabrik Burggrub.

The attribution of this doll can be established directly from the impressed marking on the back of her bisque head.

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Features

Measurements: 170 × 70 × 60 mm.

Condition: Good - small dents and surface scratches

Markings: S [PB within a five-pointed star] H, Hanna, 12/0

Date Note: Date is an estimate based on available research and stylistic features. If you have additional information, please contact us to help update our records.

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Made from the following materials

Country:

Germany

Germany’s toy history includes wooden toys from the Erzgebirge, world-famous Steiff teddy bears, and intricate bisque dolls by companies like Armand Marseille. Modern innovations like Playmobil and Märklin trains ensure Germany’s legacy in the global toy market.

Produced by:

Schönau & Hoffmeister:

Produced by:

Schönau & Hoffmeister:

Schönau & Hoffmeister was a German porcelain manufacturer established in 1901 by Arthur Schönau and Carl Hoffmeister at Burggrub in Bavaria, close to the important toy-making centre of Sonneberg. Operating as the Porzellanfabrik Burggrub, the company became known for producing finely made bisque doll heads in a variety of child, baby and character designs. Schönau & Hoffmeister dolls are particularly recognised by their distinctive **S–PB-star–H** trademark, with the letters **PB** inside a five-pointed star representing *Porzellanfabrik Burggrub*. The company produced numerous models and sizes, including the named **Hanna** model, and its heads were fitted to a variety of composition and other doll bodies. Today, the tiny PB-star trademark is an important identification feature for collectors, as it can easily be mistaken for the markings of another well-known German manufacturer, Simon & Halbig.

Produced by:

Schönau & Hoffmeister:

Product Code:

D0036

Dimenions:

170(h)

x 70(w)