Kestner Company
Kestner, “The King of Dollmakers” earned the title by making dolls from 1805-1930s, from papier-mache and wax, through
china, bisque and composition. Johannes Daniel Kestner as a manufacturer of papier-mache products including slates and
buttons, founded the company in 1805 in Waltershausen. Dolls were added in both wood and papier-mache. These were not
marked with the Kestner crown but some can be attributed to Kestner when comparing dolls to the manufacturers specification
sheets (see Grafnitz). Kestner bagan making papier mache ladies and boys doll heads in 1815 “from his own production as he
did not have the right to make papier mache goods. He also produced his own leather doll bodies, some with papier mache
arms. ”. This conflict with the guilds was resolved in 1822 when there is documentation that he was granted the right to make
papier mache items “out of natural fibres stray, moss, hay, thistles, bark etc-fully lacking in rags and paper”
Papier Mache Lady possibly by Kestner Papier Mache Child possibly by Kestner
Kestner Wax -over Papier Mache
Kestner’s dolls were simply modeled but not marked. Bodies were of leather, sometimes with wooden arms and legs. Wax
over papier mache dolls were also made by Kestner. Porcelain doll heads, china and later bisque, were added to the factory
production in the 1850s. Unique to the Kestner company was the ability of the factory to make a complete doll—head and
leather body.
Kestner China Head Kestner Bisque Gibson Girl
. D. Kestner died in 1858. The company was run by his widow and others until taken over by his grandson, Adolph, in 1863.
In 1860, Kestner & Co. bought the porcelain factory in Ohrdruf adding molded bisque head dolls to their line of products. This
set the company to take advantage of the boom in bisque headed child (be’be’) dolls in the 1880s.
In the early 1900s, Kestner & Co. added celluloid dolls, made by Rheinische Gummi und Celluloid Fabrik Co., to its line of
products. Adolph Kestner died in 1918 and then the company was run by several key employees. The Kestner dolls were
distributed in the US and Canada by George Borgfeldt. While the Kestner Co returned to production after the interruption of
World War I, it could not compete with expansion of the American doll industry and its run away popular American composition
doll. The company ultimately went bankrupt in the mid to late 1830s.
china, bisque and composition. Johannes Daniel Kestner as a manufacturer of papier-mache products including slates and
buttons, founded the company in 1805 in Waltershausen. Dolls were added in both wood and papier-mache. These were not
marked with the Kestner crown but some can be attributed to Kestner when comparing dolls to the manufacturers specification
sheets (see Grafnitz). Kestner bagan making papier mache ladies and boys doll heads in 1815 “from his own production as he
did not have the right to make papier mache goods. He also produced his own leather doll bodies, some with papier mache
arms. ”. This conflict with the guilds was resolved in 1822 when there is documentation that he was granted the right to make
papier mache items “out of natural fibres stray, moss, hay, thistles, bark etc-fully lacking in rags and paper”
Papier Mache Lady possibly by Kestner Papier Mache Child possibly by Kestner
Kestner Wax -over Papier Mache
Kestner’s dolls were simply modeled but not marked. Bodies were of leather, sometimes with wooden arms and legs. Wax
over papier mache dolls were also made by Kestner. Porcelain doll heads, china and later bisque, were added to the factory
production in the 1850s. Unique to the Kestner company was the ability of the factory to make a complete doll—head and
leather body.
Kestner China Head Kestner Bisque Gibson Girl
. D. Kestner died in 1858. The company was run by his widow and others until taken over by his grandson, Adolph, in 1863.
In 1860, Kestner & Co. bought the porcelain factory in Ohrdruf adding molded bisque head dolls to their line of products. This
set the company to take advantage of the boom in bisque headed child (be’be’) dolls in the 1880s.
In the early 1900s, Kestner & Co. added celluloid dolls, made by Rheinische Gummi und Celluloid Fabrik Co., to its line of
products. Adolph Kestner died in 1918 and then the company was run by several key employees. The Kestner dolls were
distributed in the US and Canada by George Borgfeldt. While the Kestner Co returned to production after the interruption of
World War I, it could not compete with expansion of the American doll industry and its run away popular American composition
doll. The company ultimately went bankrupt in the mid to late 1830s.
