Q: My mother has some Royal Doulton figurines of women dressed in elaborate ruffled hoop skirts, bonnets, and shawls. But one figurine seems a bit risque for Royal Doulton. She is wearing a tight, revealing dress while sprawled on a couch. Could it be a fake?
A: The Royal Doulton figurines made by Doulton and Co. after 1902 were made to sell in gift shops. Most of the figurines were sentimental, lovable, beautiful ladies from a more romantic century. But one of Doulton’s designers, Leslie Harradine, made small anthropomorphic animals and other figures that were unusual. He designed several figurines of women lounging on couches in provocative poses. One called “Dreamland,” made in the 1930s, was in the Art Deco style. Another, “Siesta” made between 1928 and 1938, featured a shapely blond in a flimsy dress leaning on a sofa covered with a pink shawl. Both of these figurines are rare and expensive today. Siesta sold in 2013 for $1,560. Dreamland was listed a few years ago for $7,000, but is worth a little less today. The fame of the artist is the reason the figurines sell for high prices.