Throughout recorded history, man has been
fascinated, mesmerized and even seduced by miniature
replicas of everyday items that symbolized and
celebrated life, lifestyle and emerging culture.
Miniature art is traced to the early 200s AD and
examples include miniature renderings etched in ivory
that were held in one’s pocket during a long journey far
f rom home, elaborate ador nments a s par t of
manuscript illumination often including portraiture of
the artist’s benefactor using the red pigment called
minimum (one origin of the word miniature), all the
way to the creation of extensive dioramas and
vignettes, room boxes and dollhouses. Most of us have
seen a miniature diorama of a city or community
rendered by an architect in a museum, as part of a
model railroad display or even a vignette depicting a
scene from a play or opera, but what most of us can
recognize is the dollhouse. I remember my sister’s
brightly colored cardboard “Barbie’s Dreamhouse” and
recall the dollhouse in my kindergarten class. But what
do we really know about these little wonderlands?
When did they emerge and were they always toys
coveted by little girls (and some of us boys)?
Miniatures throughout history
In Germany the “dockenhaus” served a double-use;
first as an artistic symbol of one’s position and were
proudly displayed in a prominent place in the home,
usually the receiving room for visitors and second, as a
teaching tool for young children on various aspects of
daily living including preparation for becoming a
housewife, mother, or head of the household.
Many early Dutch versions of the dollhouse (know
as the “cabinet house”) that were prominent fixtures in
homes of the wealthy Dutch merchant class included
cabinet doors; these doors would be opened and
closed, to advise the observer the contents were of
high value, required protection, and to look, admire,
but not touch. Often these Dutch cabinet houses
offered a feminine perspective of life in 17th Century
Holland, reflecting a woman’s mastery of her position
as lady of the house; yet they were not limited to only
to women. Dutch men often constr ucted or
commissioned the construction of curiosity or wonder
cabinets that held artifacts from their travels including
traditional artworks, gemstones, unique seashells, an
intricate watch or compass, with each piece reflecting
their interest, knowledge and position in the larger,
exterior world. One of the most famous of these
houses belonged to a wealthy Dutch woman, Petronella
Oortman in the 1700’s, and can be found on
permanent exhibition at the Rijksmuseum in
Amsterdam.
The wide emergence of elaborately constructed and
furnished dollhouses of 17 th Centur y England,
Germany and Holland were a personal reflection of
social position, affluence and expression of one’s
lifestyle. These dollhouses were finely crafted pieces of
furniture and were often part of an armoire, cupboard
or cabinet, with or without doors. These cabinets were
often set up on legs so their contents would be eyelevel and their contents were set up as highly stylized
vignettes or typical rooms of the day. Across Europe a
new form of art was born. Artisans and master
craftsmen began to work in smaller scale to produce
intricately detailed furniture, mixed media textiles,
books, paintings, ceramics, tableware (just to name a
few). These visionary artists also developed smaller
scale tools to create these works and their tools and
techniques are also considered works of artistry and
craftsmanship. Enduring examples of these works
offer historical insights into how life was lived
including typical furnishings, décor, art choices,
clothing, and food of a typical culture and time period.
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THE CONE - ISSUE #5 - SUMMER 2015