Mexican Mansion Dollhouse found on Monica Monteiro”s Flickr photostream

Mexican Mansion Dollhouse

This small mansion is believed to be a copy of a house which once stood in Puebla. It was discovered in an antique shop in Puebla in the spring of 1977. Although the facade of the house has some Moorish features, it is French in flavor, a reflection of many full-sized

Mexican Mansion Dollhouse Chapel

mansions in Puebla and Mexico City built over the years after the arrival of the troops of Napoleon III in 1862. In 1922, the house was wired and redecorated, giving the interior some feeling of the 1920s. The Paige automobile in the driveway is, along with a pair of early radio towers from this period.

Fully furnished, the house contains a drawing room, dining room, kitchen, bedroom, bath, music room, and chapel. A section of the removable facade covers each of these.

Mexican Mansion Dollhouse outdoor roof shower

The interiors are furnished primarily with fruitwood tables and chairs. Of particular note is the carved master bedroom suite done in the European style set against French-style panel wallpaper in pale pistachio green and ivory. Typical of the ’90s, the house has German marble elaborate beadwork fringe. The house is generously accessorized with milk glass, soft metal, and porcelain decorative art objects.

The imaginative roof garden with aviary, gazebo, various bird houses, and four-awninged art gallery lends great animation to the facade as does the working exterior enclosed elevator that passes up through the three-story filigree stairwell.

The house comes complete with six dolls dating from 1890-1920.

Where Is It Now?

I found the following comment by Lulu on 1909Ventilo’s blog:

“This marvelous house can be seen in person at Angels Attic, a dollhouse museum in Santa Monica California. They acquired it when the Washington Dollhouse Museum closed its doors.”

Angel’s Attic

A note about Angel’s Attic Dollhouse Museum, thanks to Wikipedia.

Angel’s Attic Dollhouse Museum in Santa Monica, California

The museum was established in 1984 by Jackie McMahan, a longtime collector, and Eleanor LaVove, a former fashion editor. McMahan and LaVove had begun a backyard dollhouse exhibition in 1974 to raise funds for a special education school attended by McMahan’s granddaughter. The annual exhibitions later moved to the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium and drew thousands of visitors. In 1981 they bought a rundown Queen Anne style house in downtown Santa Monica, which had been built in 1895, moved to its present location in 1924, later subdivided into apartments, and allowed to deteriorate. They spent almost a year restoring the house and opened the museum in 1984.

Click on the Angel’s Attic photograph to watch a video about the museum, which has more images of the Mexican Mansion Dollhouse.

Susan Downing, with Patrick Owens

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I invite you to visit my Etsy Shop where I offer many accessories and pieces of furniture in 1:12 scale.