Curious and unusual, just the way I like them! This definitely appears to be an old Amish doll to me, and the clothes most certainly are—but it’s an anomalous one for having (the remnants of) a face, which Amish dolls typically do not, in keeping with the Biblical commandment against graven images and belief that “all are alike in the eyes of God.” It looks as though the facial features were once embroidered on then ripped out years later, with the cloth around them having darkened in the interim making for a rather a ghostly looking visage now! I assume the blue pen drawn brows and eye balls were done at the same time as the embroidery—but clearly impossible to get rid of! I love things that raise more questions than they answer and provoke all sorts of speculation, and this one for me is certainly that as well as just pretty fantastic looking.
14 7/8" tall x 6 3/4" wide at arms. The clothes make me think 1930s-40s. Body is constructed with jointed (ish) arms and legs. Plenty of wear and stains but structurally sound and holding together very well.
