The Art of Play: An English Peddler Doll, 1830

Peddler Doll
English, 1830
Fabric, Leather, Paint, Cotton
The Museum of Childhood
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Today, we see toys which represent items and characters which are familiar, and therefore attractive, to children. Such was the case nearly two-hundred years ago. In fact, toys have always borrowed ideas from a child’s everyday life.


This English doll was created in London in 1830 and depicts a flower peddler—the sort that could be seen in any London square, singing sweetly to entreat passersby to offer her a coin in exchange for a bundle of violets.

The doll features a fabric body and a leather face with painted features which has been topped by hair of cotton wool. Well-loved, she’s still recognizable in the costume of many a flower merchant and would have been a comforting character for any little girl of the era.