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Queen Mary's Dolls' House

The most famous and beautiful dolls' house in the world

Queen Mary's Dolls' House is the largest, most beautiful and most famous dolls' house in the world. Built between 1921 and 1924 for Queen Mary, consort of George V, by the leading British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens, it includes contributions from over 1,500 of the finest artists, craftsmen and manufacturers of the early twentieth century. From life below stairs to the high-society setting of the saloon and dining room, and from a library bursting with original works by the top literary names of the day, to a fully stocked wine cellar and a garden, created by Gertrude Jekyll, no detail was forgotten. The house even includes electricity, running hot and cold water and working lifts. Each room is fully furnished and waiting to be explored.

It is built to outlast us all. To carry on into the future and different world this pattern of our own. It is a serious attempt to express our age and to show forth in dwarf proportions the limbs of our present world.

A.C. Benson, The Book of the Queen's Dolls' House (1924)

 

Condition Checking Queen Mary's Dolls' House

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First floor plan of the Doll's House reproduced after Lutyens, with touches of ink.
Planning the house

The house was the concept of Princess Marie Louise, cousin to King George V and childhood friend of Queen Mary

Miniature tester bed upholstered in pink and green silk. Tester with stepped canopy with feather plumes; deep fringed and tassled border. Silk back with applied Royal Coat of Arms. Shaped headboard. Drapes glued into folds. Quilt of pale gold and sil
Royal Chambers

Each room is designed to meet the particular needs of the owner

Miniature toy merry-go-round with red and white striped cotton canopy with Union flag; from which are suspended six wooden painted horses each with wooden and textile rider. On green painted wooden base containing mechanism and turning hand
Family Life

Rooms are filled with memorabilia of childhood and family life

Miniature concert grand piano in the 'Vernis Martin style'; the angular case painted with various scenes including a maiden offering flowers to Apollo on the lid; putti with musical staves on roundels on sides; the interior of the lid with an image of 'Th
Saloon and Dining Room

These rooms were laid out to allow entertaining on a grand scale

Full leather bound in blue morocco, with gold tooling.Robert Bridges (1844-1930) was a poet, but trained and worked as a doctor until 1882, when a lung condition forced him to retire. After this he devoted himself to literary research and writing poetry.
Library

170 authors of the day supplied works for the Library

'Sailing boat on the sea' by Charles Henry Baskett (RCIN 926807)
Prints and Paintings

The Dolls' House features over 750 works of art donated by artists

Miniature Singer sewing machine on integrated base of traditional form with hinged compartments (to lower machine), two small drawers and thread compartment at front. Threaded for use.
Staff Rooms and Essentials

Living quarters were important to keep staff following World War One

Miniature Rudge motorbike and sidecar, painted green. The sidecar with green leather upholstery.
Garden and Garage

The garage stores a fleet of motor cars and garden is perfectly manicured

Miniature green glass bottle of vintage champagne (Mumm)
Cellar, Kitchen and Pantry

Every domestic need is catered for

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Official Royal Residences

The income from your ticket contributes directly to The Royal Collection Trust, a registered charity. The aims of The Royal Collection Trust are the care and conservation of the Royal Collection, and the promotion of access and enjoyment through exhibitions, publications, loans and educational activities.