La Gutta Percha La Gutta Percha - Carmel Doll Shop

Note how the lambskinwig follows the shape ofthe recessed hairline.Leverd examples areknown for theirmagnificent hairstyles,if they are luckyenough to haveretained them.familiar with gutta percha, typically black, ordark brown items instantly come to mind. Youmay find it strange to imagine the raw sapharvested from the gutta tree is in fact, milkywhite in its natural state! Through heat processingof the sap, it turns a deep, rich color. The use ofgutta percha is associated with many differentforms of scientific and decorative objects, createdthroughout the nineteenth and early twentiethcenturies. Such items include ornate mourningjewelry, underwater-cable insulation,daguerreotype cases, dental implements,furniture and even golf balls! Some say the use ofgutta percha revolutionized the game of golf andtelecommunications during the nineteenthcentury would have been non-existent without it.The process of evaporating the milky fluidharvested from the immense tree, thencoagulating the latex produced gutta percha.Shaping it into inelastic bricks for export was thefinal step in the process. The manufacturer wouldsimply buy bricks of gutta percha and with littleeffort, soften the material in hot water – itremained firm, but not brittle when it cooled. Theforerunner to our modern-day latex, gutta perchacould also be processed so that it resembled thecolor of maple wood. It could easily be given acolorant or paint finish – even gold leafing –resulting in what many artisans thought wasan easy to use, pliable and moldablematerial that accepted a high-definitionform, from that molding. Its uses weredeemed – unlimited.In the mid-nineteenth century,France was at the forefront of theluxury-goods renaissance spreadingthroughout the world and any newmaterial would have been of greatinterest to the myriad realms ofmanufacturing, including the toybusiness.The doll world, then and now,always seems to have its eyespeeled for the latest trends, so itabsolutely follows that guttapercha would find its way intoFrance’s burgeoning doll industry.All that was required of thoseFrench start up doll makers was aheating stove, a pot of water and amold. Voila – one could be in business!However, one also had to have at handthe eighty francs per brick of gutta percha!We in the doll world consider the Huretsisters to be the first to use gutta percha intheir doll enterprise when they designed and2