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Louis Amberg Dolls 1878-1930

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Amberg 1909 Chantecler plush doll

ca. 1909 Amberg Chantecler, chicken doll, 14" tall, composition head set on a rooster plush jointed body. Chantecler was a popular card game at this time.  Also; Happy Hooligan, Lucky Bill, Samson (Uncle Sam's firstborn), Sunny Jim dolls.

The Louis Amberg company was founded in Cincinnati, Ohio USA in 1878 and later moved to New York City around 1893.  At some point Amberg opened a branch office in Sonneberg, Germany.  Amberg's various partners or business names were; 1881-1890 Fecheimer & Amberg, 1890-1894 Louis Amberg & Co, 1894-1907 Louis Amberg, Brill & Co,1907-1910 Hahn & Amberg, 1911-1930 Louis Amberg & Son.  Amberg first imported bisque head dolls from Germany and France, later they manufactured their own composition dolls.  In 1909 the Amberg company copyrighted the first known American composition head doll with a teddy bear body called "Lucky Bill", with Louis listed as the artist.

 

Louis Amberg & Son doll marks L.A. & S.By the late 1920s the Amberg company was advertising over 600 style numbers, including some imports, Amberg dolls are often marked L A & S or L A & S NY plus the year first produced.   In the 1920s, Amberg was one of 50 members in the Doll & Stuffed Toy Manufacturers Association.

 

In 1930 the Amberg company was sold to Horsman.

 

 

Antique Louis Amberg Dolls Identified

 

1912 Amberg Ma Chunk Herself doll, 8" tall, (an Oriental, Asian, Chinese character doll), all composition doll jointed only at the shoulders, black painted hair and facial features, closed mouth, dressed in tunic and pants, black painted shoes, doll is unmarked, has a paper label on tunic front; Ma Chunk Herself, L. A. & S. N.Y.

1912 Amberg Ma Chunk Herself doll, 8"

1912 Ma Chunk Herself doll, 8"

 

1914 Amberg John Bunny doll, 11-12" tall, celebrity doll, composition flange head and arms, cloth body and legs, molded painted brown hair, painted blue eyes, open mouth with painted upper and lower teeth, black sewn on cloth shoes.  Portrait doll of famous first American silent film comedian John H. Bunny (1863 -1915).  Doll is unmarked or marked L. A. & S. 1914.  There were possibly two John Bunny dolls made by Amberg.

 

The John Bunny photo shown on left, looks just like the dolls actual face sculpt.

 

1914 Louis Amberg John Bunny portrait doll, 12" tall

1914 John Bunny doll, 12"

 

1914 Amberg Newborn Babe doll, Bottle Babe, My Playmate or Baby, 4-13" tall, bisque head, painted hair, sleep eyes, cloth body, some had a crier, head made by three different German companies:  Armand Marseille mold 371 with an open mouth, Recknagel mold 886 and Hermann Steiner.  Was designed by doll artist and sculptor Jeno Juszko and was meant to look like a two day old baby.  Maybe marked; L. A. & S. 1914, G45520, Germany #4 - depending on bisque head maker 371, Theodor Recknagel 241 RA, 886, Hermann Steiner doll mold 240.
 

See any resemblance to Grace Putnam's Bye-Lo Baby doll created in 1923?

 

1926 Newborn Baskit Babe doll now came in a willow basket with a blanket, rattle, the larger the size doll, the more accessories were added.

 

Amberg 1914 Newborn Babe doll 13"

1914 Newborn Babe doll, 13"

1915 Amberg Baby Glee doll, 18 - 26" tall, composition flange head, cloth stuffed body with stitched hips, partial composition lower arms and legs, molded lightly painted hair with a comma shaped curl on forehead, painted blue tin sleep eyes with painted upper wispy eyelashes, big open happy smiling mouth with two upper and lower teeth, doll is unmarked.   Designed by artist Jeno Juszko.

 

Amberg Baby Glee 1915

1915 Baby Glee doll, 18"

 

1915 Amberg Charlie Chaplin doll, 14" tall, celebrity portrait doll, composition head and hands, cloth stuffed body and limbs with black shoes attached, painted facial features with mustache, came dressed in a two piece suit, shirt, tie, cane and top hat, doll is unmarked, clothing contains a label; CHARLIE DOLL World's Greatest Comedian Made Exclusively By Louis Amberg & Son, NY by Special Arrangement With Essanay Film Co.. 

 

The other portrait doll is a Zulu Lucky doll named Oo-Gug-Luk and is the last doll Hungarian born New York artist, sculptor and medalist Jeno Juszko (b. 1880-1954) made for Amberg.  Juszko also designed dolls for Borgfeldt and F. A. Lapp.

 

1915 Amberg Oo-Gug-Luk is 13" tall, uses the Charlie Chaplin head mold, cloth body painted all black with three white circles painted around eyes and closed painted red mouth, gold tone hoop earrings, shell necklace, dressed in faux white fur and a black fringe skirt.

 

Amberg 1915 Charlie Chaplin doll

1915 Charlie Chaplin doll, 14 "

1915-1920 Amberg Ambisc doll, ten various sizes, all composition jointed Character bent limb Baby dolls, molded hair or wigged, doll mark Ambisc.

1915-1920 Amberg Ambisc Doll, 13"

1915-1920 Ambisc doll, 13"

1915 Amberg Pouty Pets doll, Real Live Children, 12, 14, 16" tall, boy dolls or girl dolls, composition flange head and lower arms, cloth stuffed inside disk jointed body, bent or straight legs, deeply sculpted molded then painted hair in various short hair styles, painted side glancing eyes, pouty closed mouth, doll marks 494, L A & S © 1915 and possibly other marks. 

 

Similar to the bisque heads by Gebrüder Heubach and a competitor of Effanbee's composition Grumpy dolls.

1915 Amberg Pouty Pets dolls - Girl face, 16"

1915 Pouty Pets doll 16", Girl face

1917-1920 Amberg Victory doll, 16-24" tall, composition socket head, ball jointed composition body, wigged, sleep eyes, open mouth with teeth, most dolls have a marking on the back of Amberg Victory Doll and some dolls the backs are unmarked.  

 

1920-1927 Amberg Victory doll with a Fulper Pottery bisque marked head.  Fulper Pottery supplied bisque heads for other Amberg child and baby dolls during the World War I era 1920-1922, Horsman too.

1917-1920 Amberg Victory composition doll face, 23" tall

1917-1920 Victory doll composition head, 23"

Amberg Walking Doll Face 1919

1919 Amberg Walking Doll, 19 - 28 1/2" tall, "doll walks by guiding its arm", flange composition head on the smaller doll, composition shoulder head on the larger size, full composition arms, painted molded hair  &/or human hair or mohair wig, painted eyes or tin sleep eyes, open mouth with two upper teeth, ball jointed legs attached to dolls bottom, cloth stuffed body, came dressed in a cotton voile dress with matching bonnet both trimmed with lace, underwear, stockings and shoes, dolls maybe unmarked or marked: L. A. & S. 1919, T & N June 1919, patented June 11, 1918 No. 1269056.

 

Amberg Walking Doll body 1919

1919 Amberg Walking Doll, 22 1/2"

 

The Sears 1921 ad states this doll is three sizes: 19 1/2" former price $9.50 - Our Price $5.98.

22 1/2" former price $12.75 -

Our Price $8.95

28 1/2" former price $19.95 -

Our Price $10.85.

ca. 1920s Amberg All Bisque Character dolls, 4-7' tall, made by a German manufacturer of pre-tinted pink bisque; Bisque Girl, Amberg Mibs doll with molded flowers in hair or Amberg Baby Peggy doll

 

See below for more information on the Mibs doll.

Amberg 1920s MIB's figurine all bisque

ca. 1920s Mibs doll with molded flowers, 4 3/4"

1921 Amberg Mibs doll, 16" tall, composition shoulder head on a cloth body, composition arms above elbow, composition hip pin legs with molded painted or unpainted shoes.  Has molded painted hair with a prominent single center bang that is slightly curled, blue painted eyes, painted upper lashes, closed mouth. 

 

Mibs is a Phyllis May doll (Hazel's daughter) created by Hazel Drukker (Mrs. George Silberman), based on her column in the Evening Mail a New York daily newspaper and also based on the book titled: Phyllis May and Her Dollies published in 1920.  Doll is unmarked.

Amberg 1921 MIB's doll face

1921 MIBS doll, 16"

 

1921-1922 Amberg Nature Children dolls, 21" tall (plus three other sizes), doll shown has a composition head and lower arms, painted eyes, cloth stuffed body, upper arms and legs.  Sixteen different styles; crying, sitting, talking and walking.  Dolls maybe marked L A & S + a year or unmarked.

 

Amberg 1921 Nature Children doll, 21" tall

1921-1922 Nature Children dolls, 21"

1923 Amberg Baby Peggy doll, the Nations Darling, 20" tall, celebrity doll, either composition and wood or kid jointed body, composition head with molded brown hair, some may have a brown mohair wig as well, glass eyes, open smiling mouth with white painted teeth, doll is unmarked.   Peggy was an actress child star of the 1920s. 

 

Born 26 Oct 1918 Peggy Jean Montgomery later became a book author under the pseudonym of Diana Serra Cary, sadly she passed away on 23 FEB 2020.

Amberg 1923 Baby Peggy doll

1923 Baby Peggy doll, 20"

1924 Amberg Baby Peggy doll, the Nations Darling, 18" tall, celebrity doll, bisque head made by Armand Marseille, doll mold 972 or 973 are socket heads and molds 982 or 983 are shoulder heads, jointed composition body, brown mohair wig, glass eyes with lashes, smiling mouth, doll marked: L. A. & S. 19©24 NY + mold number.   Peggy was a child star of the 1920s.

 

Shown is Marseille's bisque head doll mold 972.

Amberg 1924 Baby Peggy the Nations Darling 18"

1924 Baby Peggy doll, the Nations Darling, 18" bisque head doll mold 972 by Armand Marseille

1924 Amberg Sunny Orange Maid doll or Sunny Orange Blossom doll, 14" tall, composition shoulder head with molded orange peel cap, arms & partial legs, cloth body with stitched shoulder & hips, squeaker in body, short arms, painted blue eyes and painted upper lashes, closed mouth, shown dressed in her original orange dress with short jacket, orange ribbon sash; SUNNY ORANGE MAID, Copr. LOUIS AMBERG & SON 1924, ?? PATENTED, doll marked  L. A. & S. 1924.

Amberg 1924 Sunny Orange doll

1924 Sunny Orange Maid doll, 14"

ca. 1925 Amberg Baby Tufums doll, tiny sizes, all bisque doll with bent limbs, Bye-Lo or New Born Babe type, very light painted hair, painted eyes, open mouth, jointed at the neck, shoulders and hips, has two bent arms and each hand is cupped to; left hand holds a baby bottle and the right hand to suck their thumb, doll marked on back LA & S Baby Tufums 107, 110 or 618 Germany.

1925 Amberg Baby Tufums doll, 2 3/4" #110

ca. 1925 Baby Tufums doll 2 3/4",

LA & S Baby Tufums 110 Germany

Charleston Toddlers an Amberg specialty trademarked 1926 Germany doll label1926 Amberg Charleston Toddlers dolls, 11" tall, all composition black or white dolls, painted side glancing eyes, wigged, painted molded shoes, doll marked or labeled Charleston Toddlers an Amberg specialty trademarked 1926 Germany.
 

1926 Amberg Charleston Toddlers dolls, 11"

1926 Amberg Charleston Toddlers dolls, 11"

1927+ Amberg Vanta Baby doll, bisque head 20-22" tall or composition head 16-20" tall, composition and cloth body, molded painted hair, sleep eyes, open mouth with teeth. doll usually marked Vanta Baby Amberg.

Amberg 1927 Vanta Baby doll

1927 Vanta Baby doll

 

Amberg 1928 Sue 14", body twist doll1928 Amberg Sue doll with the body twist waist, 8 or 14" tall, all composition with an extra ball and socket twist waist body, several dolls came with this feature; Edwina doll, IT doll (supposedly referring to actress Clara Bow), Peter Pan doll, Teenie Weenies doll or Tiny Tots dolls

 

Sue has a composition head, slight frowning expression, molded short waved hair with side sweeping bangs, painted eyes, closed pouty mouth, jointed body twist waist.  Some dolls maybe marked: Amberg Pat. Pend. L. A. & S. © 1928.

 

This doll mold was also used by Horsman for their Peggy doll.

 

1928 Amberg Sue doll, Horsman Peggy doll, 14" tall

1928 Sue body twist doll, 14"

 

1928 Amberg Teenie Weenie dolls or Amberg Tiny Tots dolls, 8 or 14" tall, boy or girl dolls, all composition, body twist waist and jointed only at the shoulders, stationary legs with black painted shoes, slightly bent left arm, molded painted hair; the boy with "Justin Bieber" style hair, with bangs and hair combed straight down towards the face, the girl has a short bob with slight center part bangs and waves over her ears, usually with brown painted side glancing eyes, both have closed mouths, doll marked  L. A. & S. © 1928.

 

Had a paper hangtag; Amberg, The Teenie Weenies, Weenies Line, Trademark Reg., The Golden Anniversary.

 

The 13" size Tiny Tots dolls or Teenie Weenie dolls came on toddler jointed bodies. The 1912 version of Tiny Tots dolls at 12" tall, have a different face mold, flange composition heads with open smiling watermelon mouth, composition hands and cloth bodies, doll mark © L. A. & S. 1912.

 

Amberg 1928 Teenie Weenies doll or Tiny Tots doll, 8"

1928 Teenie Weenies doll or Tiny Tots doll, 8"

1929 Amberg Little Amby doll, 13" tall, all composition jointed toddler body, molded painted hair, brown painted eyes, open or closed mouth, doll marked Amberg  L. A. & S © Co.  Companion to the Tiny Tots or Teenie Weenie dolls.

 

Amberg 1929 Little Amby doll 13", face

1929 Little Amby doll 13", face

Louis Amberg Doll Mold Numbers Identified

1, 2, 4, 12, 40, 41, 42, 43, 43/1, 107, 108, 110, 241, 247, 414, 494, 574, 618, 784, 886.2, 972, 973, 982, 983, 44520

Additional Antique Amberg dolls not shown

 

ca. 1903 Amberg Mama or Papa dolls, bisque head, glass sleep eyes, closed watermelon smiling mouth, human or mohair wig, ball jointed body, voice box, dolls were imported, the faces are similar to early Campbell Kids dolls.

ca. 1909 Amberg Angora dogs with Turkish angora manes, plush dog that more resembles a lion with a pointed nose, long facial mane and long stiff tail with a tuff of the angora mane at the end. Amberg also sold Teddy Bears and Teddy Dolls.
 
ca. 1909 Amberg Rompers doll or Sambo doll, 10, 12 or 15" tall, made by Hahn & Amberg, white or black character dolls, was the same as the above dolls only in different sizes and wore a set of infant "rompers". The black baby doll Sambo was featured wearing a straw hat.

1909 Amberg Sunny Jim doll, 11" tall, composition flared head with a light blue plush body and limbs jointed at the shoulders and hips, light brown painted hair with no molding, blue painted eyes, open mouth with molded tongue, Horsman Billikin competitor, doll is unmarked.

1910 Amberg Baby Beautiful doll, 18 or 23" tall, white or black doll, cloth body, open mouth, unbreakable and positively washable, came dressed in a christening gown with bonnet. There were 75 style models of Baby Beautiful designed by various artists and sculptors including; Jeno Juszko and Grace G. Drayton.
 
1910 Amberg Baby Blue doll, 12" tall, composition Girls head with blue eyes and blue velvet cloth body, also available in 1913-1914.

1910 Amberg Dorothy Dainty doll, unsure all the sizes, composition head and arms, cloth stuffed body, molded painted hair with hair loop for bow, blue painted side glancing eyes, open mouth with four upper teeth, doll marked L. A. & S. 414 1910.
 
1910 Amberg Swat Mulligan-Mascot doll, 11 or 21" tall, composition head with cloth body and limbs, open mouth, wore a long sleeved shirt that buttoned down the front, pants, baseball cap, bat and ball. "The Cute Baseball Kid".

1911 Amberg Baby Bright Eyes doll, size unknown, young baby doll with big eyes, forehead and cheeks and Laughing Boy doll, size unknown, laughing face with open mouth and teeth, both dolls designed by doll artist Jeno Juszko.
 
1911 Amberg Bobby Blake doll, Amberg Dolly Drake doll, 8" tall, Campbell kid type, composition head and hands with molded hair and painted features, cloth limbs with sewn on cloth shoes and straw stuffed body. Designed by Grace G. Drayton Wiedersum. These dolls must have had their copy cats as the 1911 Plaything ad states: Amberg note to Trade: "We are the unquestioned originator of the Bobby Blake and Dolly Drake models, all heads copied after them are imitations". Trade Ad: "Do not be misled by inferior ones of these or others of our numerous original dolls. We are protecting ourselves and our customers against infringes of our copyright and trademark rights".  Both dolls are unmarked, may have an ink stamp on body of Copyright 1911, by Louis Amberg & Son NY., Sole Makers.
 
1911 Amberg Buster Boy doll, composition doll.

1911 Amberg Little Sister doll, 14" tall, composition head with molded hair on cloth body, wore a long sleeved blouse trimmed with ric-rack and a one piece sleeveless v-neck checked or plaid jumper with pleated skirt with ric-rack trim on front V and around arm holes and waist.
 
1911 Amberg Sassy Sue doll, 9 1/2" tall, composition head with molded hair and molded knobs for ears that are used to tie a taffeta hair ribbon in each, painted eyes, closed slight smiling mouth, cloth body and limbs with sewn on black cloth shoes, wore a solid color long dress, long sleeved with cloth belt of same fabric, doll is unmarked.
 
1912 Amberg Character Boy doll, 19" tall, deep molded painted hair, blue painted eyes, open mouth with four painted upper teeth, excelsior stuffed muslin cloth body, pink cloth arms and legs with pin and disk joints, doll marked © L A & S 1912.
 
1912-1913 Amberg Curly Locks doll, composition head with molded curls, painted eyes, cloth body, composition hands, doll marked 574 © L. A. 1912.

1912-1914 Amberg Laughing Marietta doll, 12" tall, composition head and hands, cloth stuffed body, molded ribbons in hair, similar to the Naughty Marietta doll.
 
1912 Amberg Multi-Face doll, 12" tall, composition socket head, jointed baby body with bent leg limbs, two faces; one laughing face with cheek dimples, open mouth and two upper teeth and tongue, one crying face no dimples, sad down turned open mouth, molded painted hair, painted eyes, prominent ears, doll is unmarked. Head mold is a copy of Kley & Hahn multi-face two faced doll mold 159.
 
1912 Amberg Sis Hopkins doll, 14" tall, celebrity doll, molded painted bisc like composition head, cloth body, arms and legs jointed with inside discs, red painted hair bows, rolled up painted red hair braids, painted side glancing blue eyes, painted open smiling mouth, the striped red and white stockings with black boots that are part of the leg casing, doll is unmarked. Designed and sculpted by doll artist Jeno Juszko. Made with permission of comedienne Rose Melville (real name Rose Smoch 1873-1946) who played the character Sis Hopkins in a touring play called Zeb beginning in 1889 thru the 1920s. Note: Georgene Averill also made a Sis Hopkins doll that is marked: G. G. Drayton © or Sis Hopkins.
 
1912-1913 Amberg Yankee Doodle doll, 15" tall, "Bisc" like finish, composition head and hands, molded painted hair, open mouth, stubby nose, comical facial expression, cloth stuffed body, dressed in stars and stripes, companion doll to Hail Columbia. Designed by Jeno Juszko.

1913 Amberg Baby Blue Eyes doll, 12" tall, composition head with molded hair, blue eyes, cloth body.

1913 Amberg Agustus Carney doll, 11" tall, composition flange head and short arms, cloth body, upper arms and legs and black fabric feet, jointed at the shoulders and hips, molded yellow painted hair, painted blue eyes, painted open mouth with eight upper painted teeth, came wearing a denimun long sleeve shirt, fabric and plush riding chap pants with belt and fabric gun holder and bandanna scarf, doll marked L.A. & S.  Augustus Carney as film character Alkali Ike, doll sold my Essanay Film Manufacturer Company of Chicago.

1913 Amberg The Wonder Baby doll, composition head and hands with a Bisc like finish, molded painted hair, painted eyes, straw stuffed body and legs.

ca. 1914 Amberg Nancy doll 7", designed by Hazel Drukker, all bisque with blonde molded wavy hair with a blue bow, closed mouth, painted white socks with top blue band, brown shoes, doll marked Germany or unmarked.  Doll has been reproduced.


1916 Amberg Skookum, The Bully Kiddo Doll, various sizes, composition head & hands, cloth body, felt clothing, produced by Amberg for the Northwestern Fruit Exchange, Skookum Apple Packers of Wanatchee, Washington.

1918 Amberg AMKID doll, 17, 20, 24, 28" tall, composition shoulder head and partial lower arms, oilcloth stuffed jointed body, celluloid sleep eyes or painted eyes (17 and 20"), open mouth with two upper teeth, mohair wig.  Doll head is unmarked. Body has a paper label that reads; AMBERG DOLLS, The World Standard, Made in U.S.A. AMKID, TRADEMARK REG., Cork Stuffed, Washable Sanitary.

1918 Amberg Happinus doll, 11" tall, all composition head and body with joints at shoulders and hips, similar to Gebrüder Heubach's bisque Coquette type head mold with painted, bobbed wavy hair and an indentation for a hair ribbon, painted eyes, closed mouth, doll is unmarked.
 
1924 Amberg Anniversary Baby doll, Mama doll, composition head and legs, cloth stuffed body and arms, sleep eyes.
 
1928 Amberg Amfelt cloth dolls, fourteen doll styles, various sizes, washable faces, cloth bodies jointed at neck shoulders and hips, single strap shoes, imported the dolls from Paris, France to compete with Lenci and others of this era.

ca. 1928 Amberg Baby Nod doll, bisque flange neck joint head, cloth body, composition hands, glass eyes, closed mouth, doll marked Baby Nod, LA & S NY, Germany, JGODI 2309/4 DRGM (bisque head by J.G. Dietrich - Jgodi, made by Ernst Heubach), this is a Bye-Lo look a like.

1929 Amberg Peter Pan doll, 14" tall, all composition, molded painted brown orange hair in a short Dutch boy straight hair with bangs, painted brown eyes, smokey eye shadow, closed painted mouth, jointed at the neck, shoulders, body twist waist and hips, came wearing a brown fabric short tunic dress with larger fringe at neck and hemline, socks and brown oilcloth shoes with bow amd metal, doll mark Amberg, Pat. Pend., L.A. & S. © 1928 and cloth clothing tag; An Amberg Doll With A Body Twist all, all it's own! Pat. Pend. SFR No. 320,016.

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