The Perennial Appeal of Rag Dolls

Around the globe and across the years, rag dolls carve their own niche

Johnny Gruelle illustration for his 1918 book The Original Raggedy Ann Stories

There’s magic in humble scraps of cloth, deer hide, fur, and cornhusks. With a bead or two, a hank of yarn, and a few embroidered stitches, a rag doll can be birthed. The first parent to cobble together bits and bobs into a human shape and hand it to their child will never be known. The British Museum has a Roman rag doll from 1st-5th…