VTG Mexican Papier Paper Mache Doll Folk Art Martha Cartonería Lupita Purple

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VTG Mexican Papier Paper Mache Doll Folk Art Martha Cartonería Lupita Purple:
$37.99

Available is an old vintage papier mache doll from Mexico. She is handmade and hand painted and bears the name Martha on her chest. She has dangly leaf shaped earrings and her arms and legs are jointed and move. She does have some wear from age, most notably some paint coming off in areas and small marks on her body; one hole for a leg joint is torn slightly, making the hole more like a slit for the rope; her backside and inner left thigh have areas where the paper is cracking. There is a long crack on the inside of her right arm (the left as you are looking at her.) The best way to judge her condition is to see the photos above. She measures 18 inches tall by 6 inches wide and 4 inches deep. Stories around these dolls include that in Mexican brothels, the dolls were used to advertise what women were inside. Another story is that if a woman suspected her husband of cheating on her, she would write the name of his mistress on the doll to let them know she knew. These papier mache dolls were made by poorer families to imitate their porcelain counterparts from Spain, but the dolls lost popularity in the 20th century because plastic dolls became available.