Bye-Lo Baby Doll

ClassificationsFurnishings-Recreation-dolls

Artist Grace Storey Putnam (American, 1877 - 1947)

Date1920-1940

Made AtGermany, Europe

MediumCeramic, paint and cloth

Dimensions10 1/4 × 3 1/4 × 7 3/4 in. (26 × 8.3 × 19.7 cm)

Credit LineGift of Mrs. Elizabeth Lyser Powers

Object number76.5.1

DescriptionBye-Lo babies, known as "million dollar babies," are among the biggest money-making dolls of all time along with Barbie, Kewpie, and Shirley Temple. The first Bye-Los, copyrighted in 1922, had composition bodies, which proved too hard for the realistic effect desired by consumers. Subsequently, cloth versions such as this one were made from one piece of fabric and designed so the legs turned inward in a naturalistic position. The earliest Bye-Los had realistic wax heads, but this model is made from bisque ceramic produced in Germany.

This doll was given to the mother of the donor, Abigail Stackpole Lyser of Berkeley, by the creator, Grace Storey Putnam, who is often referred to as the "great American success story" in doll lore. In designing the Bye-Lo baby, it was her desire to create a doll which was as lifelike as humanly possible.

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