There’s nothing left under the tree, the crackers have been pulled and the bubble wrap’s been popped. The winning presents will still be getting played with though, today, tomorrow and the day after that. Capital Collections, our online image library, showcases five exhibitions of the must-have toys of generations past. In the Eighties there were Rubik’s Cubes and Cabbage Patch dolls while the children of the Fifties played with Dan Dare Board Games and skipping ropes. Some toys are perennial favourites. Star Wars Lightsabers were tipped to top Christmas Lists this year, over thirty years after the original figures were produced.
If you were a bit disappointed yesterday with what Santa brought you, spare a thought for the owner of this homemade, but no doubt well-loved toy. (No batteries required.)
This doll is made from an old shoe and someone has spent a lot of time giving it arms and legs and dressing it. It dates from the early 20th Century and is part of a collection of over 600 dolls which belonged to Edward Lovett (1852-1933). Lovett was particularly interested in this type of makeshift doll and travelled extensively collecting these dolls from children in exchange for new ones. This doll also appears in Whose Town? in Levi’s ‘Life in a Box’. The picture is used to give context to Levi’s desperate situation when he arrives in Edinburgh, desolate and penniless. Take a look at Whose Town? and a glimpse into Levi’s childhood.
