Turin--Lenci dolls

About 1920, Elena and Enrico Scavini began to create dolls and toys from the wool felt made near their home in Turin, Italy. The Scavinis registered the trade name Lenci (Elena's nickname) to use on their toys. At the 1921 toy show in Leipzig, Germany, the Scavinis displayed 100 designs that received high praise, even from their German competitors. Besides dolls representing children, Lenci dolls included cowboys and Indians, ethnic groups, soldiers, and policemen. The dolls had expressive molded and painted felt faces, moveable bodies, and colorful costumes. They appealed to both children and adults, who used them as decorations, but were relatively expensive compared to bisque dolls. The Lenci factory was largely destroyed during World War II. After the war, dolls bearing the Lenci name were made from plastic and composition and had little relationship to the dolls produced by the Scavinis.