SFBJ 230 Fortune Teller Doll c. 1910
This is another one of those beautiful dolls antique dolls “with a twist” that I purchased at the Theriault’s doll auction in Las Vegas. I’ve always liked the SFBJ 230, since they are pretty much the last variety of French Jumeau doll–they use the actual Jumeau molds from the Jumeau doll firm before it was folded into SFBJ (“Société Française de Fabrication de Bébés et Jouets”) . I also really like SFBJ dolls that are all original (as this doll is), and which look like they just stepped out of the SFBJ doll and toy catalogs from the early 1900s. Finally, this doll is a fortune teller! Fortune teller antique dolls were made out of china dolls, paper mache dolls and French fashion dolls. It is relatively rare to see an intact SFBJ fortune teller doll (all the fortune teller dolls are hard to find in good condition).
As with this doll, fortune teller antique dolls have skirts that are made of fortunes! For use at a party, you took your fortune from the folds of the doll’s skirt (and hence why you don’t often see these dolls intact!).
This particular doll has her original outfit, original hair set, and original banner describing her role as a fortune teller. She has a fully-jointed composition body (yes, including legs) and nearly all of her original fortunes, each fortune can swivel out in-between individual fabric panels. She stands 18 inches tall, and is marked SFBJ 230 Paris 4. She was produced circa 1910. For more photos of this doll, including seeing her fortunes and her banner in detail, visit the SFBJ Fortune Teller Doll Photo Gallery.
