Grecon Dolls - The Two Scales
By Zoe Handy
Often, when I post a photo of a 1:12 scale Grecon doll, someone will express surprise that they were made in that scale. So, I thought it might be useful to show some photos to demonstrate the two different scales.
Smaller Scale Grecons
By far the best known and most commonly found Grecon dolls are the smaller scale ones.
Adults of this size are generally between 7.5 cm and 10 cm (3 - 4 inches) tall, which makes them roughly between 1:24 and 1:18 scale - the perfect size for many vintage dolls’ houses.
Grandpas – showing how they got smaller over the years! The heights are 9.5, 8.5 and 7.8 cm (3.7″, 3.3″ and 3.1″) left to right.
Children are around 6 cm (2 3/8″) tall and I can see no distinct pattern of shrinkage over the years, apart from in foot size. In fact, the latest of the children (from the 1980s), are slightly taller than the chunky early ones, which is why they are so very unstable on their tiny feet.
Toddlers - unlike the adults, there is no distinct pattern of shrinking over the years. (Earliest on the left to latest on the right.)
Larger Scale Grecons
Much less commonly found are the larger-scale Grecons.
Adults in this larger scale are generally between 5 and 6 inches tall (excluding headwear), making them roughly 1:12 scale.
1:12 Scale Grecons. The Guard is 17.5 cm (7″) tall – including his bearskin!
The lady on the right in the photo above is later than the other two, however, they are all quite early dolls (1930s to mid-40s).
This unusual, larger-scale gardener on the left is a fairly recent addition to my collection.
1:12 Scale Bavarian/Austrian Couple. He is 14.6 cm (5 3/4″) tall, including his hat, and she is the same height to the top of her garland. [Photo © Jenny.]
The difference is most evident when you see the two scales side by side.
Smaller- and larger-scale Tyrollean ladies with toddlers. (The larger-scale toddler has a replacement face.)
I don’t own an example of a 1:12 scale baby (i.e. with shoeless, wool-wrapped feet) but there is one illustrated in ‘Dollhouse and Miniature Dolls’ by Marcie & Bob Tubbs, so they do exist.
I've only ever seen early larger-scale dolls, i.e. with Melon-shaped and Oxford-style feet, suggesting that they were only produced from the 1930s through to the mid 1940s, whereas the smaller-scale Grecons were produced from the 1930s through to about 1986. Of course, if any readers happen to have or happen to know of any later larger-scale examples, then I would be very interested to hear from them.
- For more information on Grecon Dolls, see the 'About Grecon Dolls' page on my Grecondale website.
- Unless otherwise stated, all photos are © Zoe Handy.