Summary

Alternative Name(s): Wedding Cake Charm; Token; Frozen Charlotte

Tiny ceramic pudding doll, in Frozen Charlotte style, with arms and legs fixed to sides.

Said by the family to have been used in the wedding cake of Florence Louise Steward and Charles Henry Irish, at Christ Church, Hawthorn, 11 August 1897. It was a significant wedding for the family, and they became an important family in Richmond. The doll was passed down through the Payne family, who are descendants, until donated to Museums Victoria. The doll was stored with a silk ribbon and serviette, and wax and wire flowers that are said to have crumbled away.

Some sources suggest that dolls such as these were placed in wedding cakes to represent future children - the finder would soon have a child.

Physical Description

Tiny ceramic pudding doll, with arms and legs fixed to sides. Matt finish. Hair is coloured yellow, lips red and eyes black. Naked.

More Information

  • Collecting Areas

    Home & Community, Public Life & Institutions

  • Acquisition Information

    Donation from Liz Murray, 12 Feb 2009

  • Date Used

    1897

  • Inscriptions

    INSCRIPTIONS: Imprinted on back: 'JAPAN'

  • Classification

    Celebrations & traditions, Weddings, Wedding cakes

  • Category

    History & Technology

  • Discipline

    History

  • Type of item

    Object

  • Object Measurements

    11 mm (Width), 6 mm (Depth), 30 mm (Height)

  • References

    'Etiquette of Weddings', Australian Etiquette or the Rules and Usages of the Best Society in the Australian Colonies, People's Publishing Company, Melbourne, 1885, pp. 202-215 'Rich Bride or Christening Cake', Isabella Beeton, 1880. The Book of Household Management, p.880 'Menu for a Wedding Breakfast', Isabella Beeton, early 20th century. Beeton's Household Management (Museum Victoria library)

  • Keywords

    Weddings, Dolls