paper doll: Regency Costume Dolls

Some scholars believe that modern paper dolls are descendants of the 18th-century jumping-jack jointed paper figures that adults used to satirize the noble classes. By the mid-1700, paper dolls with wardrobes appeared in fashion centers like London, Paris, and Berlin. The invention of lithography in 1796 allowed publishers to produce larger runs of detailed, hand-colored paper figures. Early paper dolls often conveyed morality tales and other paper dolls served as promotional items. ����_�Godey����_��s Lady Book����_�_ became the first magazine to include paper dolls in its pages. These early paper dolls offered new forms of entertainment. The paper dolls were lavish, yet disposable. Many artists with a background in the garment industry created intricate, fashion-forward wardrobes for paper dolls. Later paper dolls portrayed celebrities of movies, radio, and television. Paper dolls provided a cheap way to make-believe. Some think, in fact, that girls gave up their paper dolls to watch television. The heyday of paper dolls ended at about the time that most American owned their first televisions.