HOME
What's New Subscribe to Our Web Site Newsletters Calendar of Events Recent Acquisitions Videos and Podcasts About the Gallery George de Forest Brush: The Indian Paintings Teen Studio Saturdays
Global Navigation Collection Exhibitions Planning a Visit Programs Online Tours Education Resources Gallery Shop Support the Gallery NGA Kids
National Gallery of Art - THE COLLECTION
image of Corn Husk Doll
Corn Husk Doll
Rendered by Jane Iverson (artist)
watercolor, graphite, and gouache on paper
overall: 27.8 x 22.4 cm (10 15/16 x 8 13/16 in.) Original IAD Object: 8 1/4" high
Index of American Design
1943.8.15609
From the Tour: Dolls from the Index of American Design
Object 4 of 26

The range of materials used to make dolls shows great ingenuity. In the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, a number of American dolls were made from cornhusks and corncobs. This cornhusk doll was made about 1895 in Essex County, Massachusetts. The husk forms the head, limbs, and clothes; cornsilk provides the hair. Cornhusk dolls may have been invented by the early settlers themselves or copied from the Indians. Improvised, handmade dolls of various materials are a tradition in America. Common in the early days of our country, homemade dolls are still found in areas where the commercially produced type is not easily affordable.

Full Screen Image
Artist Information

«back to gallery»continue tour