Jumeau Dolls
Jumeau Dolls are highly collectible.
Jumeau is certainly the Premiere Doll Maker of all time
The Jumeau Company began as a partnership between Pierre-François Jumeau and Louis-Desire Belton.
This was in the early 1840s and they produced dolls until 1844 when the two partners received an honourable mention for their dolls at the Paris Exposition.
(Paris Expositions were held regularly to promote French Culture and Products and to win anything there was a great honour.)
(Paris Expositions were held regularly to promote French Culture and Products and to win anything there was a great honour.)
In 1846 the partnership seemed to have disappeared since Jumeau was producing dolls by himself.
Next event was in 1851 when Pierre-François Jumeau was awarded the First Place Medal at the Victorian Great Exhibition in London.
Until this point Jumeau was only selling to other dealers and wholesalers but he soon started to expand the business by wax doll from England and Stiener Dolls which made a great addition to his range.
Most of the awards he received were more for the quality of the Dolls Clothes rather than the dolls but this changed in 1867 when he won a Silver Medal for his dolls with a special mention for the quality of the dolls heads.
Pierre-François son, Emile Jumeau joined the Jumeau Company in 1867 and they soon started producing their own porcelain dolls at their Montreuil Factory.
A Gold Medal came to the Jumeau Factory in 1873 from the Vienna Exposition.
It is very difficult to identify a Jumeau doll produced before 1870 due to lack of markings.
Jumeau decided to produce a new range of dolls in 1877.
These were the Bébé dolls so-called because they looked like a real little girl.
Bébé dolls had special stylish clothes produced for them and realistic glass eyes meant they looked even more like real girls.
These sold in their thousands and assured the success of Jumeau as a leading doll maker.
(At this time many doll makers from Thuringia were proving strong competition for French Doll Makers.)
A Prized Gold Medal from the 1878 Expositions was a great selling point and this is proudly advertised on almost every part of the new dolls including the dress,shoes and boxes.
More prizes followed including best dollmaker at the 1879 Sydney International Exhibition and Melbourne Exhibition in Australia.
Dolls were of course a real Luxury item and were relatively expensive even at that time. A luxury Doll was as much of a status symbol as an iphone is today.
Doll production soared and Jumeau were producing 3 million dolls a year by 1892.
Jumeau had their Golden Age from late 1870s to the late 1890s when the German Doll Makers started to mass market their dolls.
German Dolls were cheaper than the lovely Jumeau Dolls and little girls loved them as they were still well made if not quite as fashionable as French Dolls.
Jumeau got into difficulties financially and was eventually taken over by Société Française de Fabrication de Bébés et Jouets.
The Jumeau Brand survived though as the S.F.B.J. continued using that trademark throughout the 20th century. And contined to make Jumeau style Dolls.
Jumeau Dolls fetch really high prices.
Late Jumeau Dolls ALWAYS have a makers mark at the back of the head just above the hairline.
Ask to see a photo of that mark if you are considering buying on the internet.
There are excellent reproductions being sold and you should always ask for a certificate of authenticity for any expensive Jumeau Doll.
Here are some reiews of Jumeau Dolls:
http://www.bargainbisquedolls.com/Reviews/Jumeau General Jumeau Information
http://www.bargainbisquedolls.com/Jumeau/jumeau-bebe The Jumeau Bebe Doll was one of the most widely collect dolls in Victorian times
http://www.bargainbisquedolls.com/Jumeau/jumeau-automaton Jumeau made numerous dolls with mechanical or clockwork movments