item details
NamePeg doll, policeman
ProductionMargaret Sampson; maker/artist; Circa 1941; Hastings
Classificationdolls
Materialswool, wood, mother of pearl, cotton
Materials SummaryWooden peg doll dressed in a knitted wool outfit with mother-of-pearl buttons
DimensionsOverall: 64mm (width), 135mm (height), 30mm (depth)
Registration NumberGH017997
Credit lineGift of Eileen Sampson, 2014
Overview
Peg dolls - a thrifty tradition
Making do with what was at hand became a necessity during World War II (1939–45), when few toys were manufactured. With a bit of imagination, a peg or wooden spoon could be given features and a personality.
This peg doll, made to look like a policeman, was made in about 1941 for Eileen Sampson by her mother Margaret. Eileen was about 5 years old when she got the doll and remembers taking it to school and comparing it with her classmate’s peg dolls.
Exquisite dolls shipped out to New Zealand from Europe were extremely expensive but even when affordable dolls became available in the 1950s, many Kiwi children continued to play with home-made dolls.