Unique Museum in Kansas City

When the Brooklyn Dodgers started Jackie Robinson at first base on April 15, 1947, he broke the color barrier that relegated African American players to the Negro Leagues. Robinson’s fame inspired many toys, including this composition child doll dressed in the Dodger’s uniform with Robinson’s number 42 on the back.

In the 1950s and 60s, space exploration captured children’s imaginations. Many toys were created that predicted future modes of transportation. The Astro 8 features a single pilot under a clear plastic dome, surrounded by lithographed instruments. Operating with friction generated by three wheels, a spinning disk produced sparks under the red and green colored plastic panels on the body of the saucer.

The Rocket Space Pistol was based on the futuristic cartoon strip about Buck Rogers. The story, set in the 25th century, featured guns that fired “explosive rockets.” Dumont Reed of Pawnee County, Kansas, received this toy pistol for his birthday. It emitted a pop sound when the handle was cocked. Dumont especially remembered this detail: “It was the loudest snap you ever heard—Bam!”

Miss Mary was made by Rhode Island doll artist Izannah Walker (1817-1888) who ran a home-based business. Her patented dolls were constructed out of cloth, including the heads which were made using glue and a press. The dolls were then oil painted with delicate features, perhaps as portraits of the little girls who would eventually own them. Miss Mary and her extensive wardrobe belonged to Mary Estelle Newell (b. 1857). A daguerreotype of Mary Estelle shows that she and her doll had matching dresses. Exhibited in "The Doll Gallery" from Thanksgiving through Epiphany (January 6) each year.

Measuring just 10 inches, this doll is the work of African American artist Leo Moss, a handyman in Macon, Georgia. Moss made his portrait dolls in the likeness of family, friends, and members of the community. He molded the heads out of papier-mâché and purchased the composition bodies and glass eyes. The doll remained with the Moss family until the 1970s, and it has most recently been a part of the Myla Perkins collection. It is not marked with a name like some of Moss’s other dolls, so its gender is indiscernible. Exhibited in "The Doll Gallery."

One of the most popular toys of all time was born in 1902, when Clifford Berryman’s famous cartoon documented President Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt’s refusal to shoot a tethered bear during a hunting trip. This teddy bear is paired with a rare photograph of its original owner, Mabel Dickson (1900-1981). Mabel lost her mother at an early age, and her teddy bear was a much treasured companion. Later, she reminisced that in times of frustration her bear received a punch in the nose! On exhibit in "Toys from the Attic: Stories of American Childhood."

Lee-Ann Chellis Wessel created the painting on wood panel using the traditional method of mixing egg yolk with pigment. It is a replica of Domenico Ghirlandaio’s 1488 portrait of Giovanna, a young mother from a noble family. The original painting is in the Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum in Madrid.

On the 18th-centiry tea table, a vessel like this would have provided a hot water source to brew and dilute tea. The Georgian teakettle with ivory handle and bird’s-head spout sits on a fitted lampstand, the source of heat. Obadiah Fisher (1941-2005), who specialized in recreating 18th-century silver in miniature, made this set in 18-karat gold using the lost wax casting method. The teakettle and spout are hollow, the lid is removable, and it can be attached to the stand using four thin chains.

Made of English oak and veneered burled walnut, the secretary is adorned with in-laid ebony and holly starbursts. The piece is so finely constructed that the drawers are dove-tailed, the steel lock functions, and the interior is festooned with ivory. There are nineteen secret compartments within the cabinet, one of which contains two hand-painted miniature postcards. This is one of six known fine-scale secretaries made by Frank Early. One resides in Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House and another in the Thorne Rooms at the Art Institute of Chicago. Exhibited in the "Masterpiece Gallery."

Natseway fashions his miniatures after full-size pottery made by Pueblo people who lived in the Southwest. This black and white miniature is inspired by an Anasazi vessel from circa 1600s and includes an animal effigy handle.

William R. Robertson labored nine years on the research and construction of a pair of miniature houses dubbed Twin Manors (the other is in a private collection). The architecture is an assemblage of elements modeled after real homes from Maine to Virginia. Authentic materials were used including 18th century wood and brick. Museum co-founder Barbara Marshall selected the furniture and household items for Twin Manors, which includes works by Robertson and many other artists. Exhibited in Fine-Scale Miniatures.

Lee-Ann Chellis Wessel is a fine-scale ceramicist who uses slip casting and wheel turning to make these fragile objects. “Liqirizia” is the Italian word for liquorice, and the pitcher is derived from 16th century Italian Duruta porcelain.