Dolls Houses Celebrate Our Heritage
Doll Houses are thought by some as merely a child’s toy or just miniature displays of wealth and social standing by the rich. They were used in the 18th century to teach domestic management duties to middle class young women and it wasn’t until mass production by the Germans initially that dolls houses became a genuine child’s toy.However, these miniature creations can also perform another purpose by preserving and commemorating significant architectural styles.Should the actual buildings themselves fall before the bulldozer ad developer, at least the expertly and loving crafted dolls house keeps an accurate picture of period styles alive.
Take for example the works of Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Mackintosh one of the early pioneers of the Modern Movement. Among his major architectural works is Glasgow School of Art (now the Mackintosh Building), a series of Glasgow Tea Room interiors and large private houses such as Windy Hill in Kilmacolm and The Hill House in Helensburgh. For those who can’t make it to those destinations, there is a chance to appreciate Mackintosh’s unique take on architectural design by viewing a Charles Rennie Mackintosh-style dolls house in the Bethnall Green Museum, London.The miniature faithfully preserves details such the staircase newel post design taken from Martyr’s Public School, the front door reflecting Mackintosh’s own home and the internal doors inspired by Craigie Hall.
Similarly, Edwin Lutyens was the best known British architect of the early part of the 20th century. He created the Cenotaph in Whitehall and was one of the major contributors to the ‘Arts and Crafts’ movement.Famous for the “Surrey Style”in his domestic architecture, he also designed Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House which is now in Windsor Castle.The Surrey Style is reproduced in many examples of dolls house, with large latticework windows, distinctive big roofs with dormer windows and heavy window frames and doors.
So before you dismiss dolls house as mere toys or the fads of obsessed collectors, remember that they at least portable and easily protected and care be very good learning toys. In future years, they may well be the only reminders of great architectural achievements when the real thing has crumbled to dust or been destroyed.