Roman rag doll
A doll of linen rags stuffed with papyrus and cloth, found in a child’s grave in Egypt.
Egypt’s dry climate has preserved cloth toys that otherwise vanished. The doll shows that children’s play has looked much the same for two thousand years. It is in the British Museum.
Materials: Linen, papyrus, rags
Manufacture: Pieces of cloth were wound and sewn round a stuffing; the face embroidered or painted.
How simply the doll is made – of the same cloth as everyday clothes.
The worn surfaces that show it was played with.