Q: I want to know what this weird figure is. Its eyes can pop out and become long sticks. Someone told me the figure is worth a lot. I'm a dealer in Uruguay.
A: Your wooden toy with movable parts and eyes that bug out is called a "Kobe doll." They were originally made in Kobe, Japan, from 1870 until about 1920 and were sold in souvenir shops. They are handmade of ebony or another dark wood and have ivory features. Most are small, under 6 inches tall, and some have several moving parts–they might play an instrument, eat, drink, or perform gymnastics, like your doll. Kobe dolls with ivory inserts made before about 1920 are worth the most, about $500 to $1,000. Copies made in the 1920s and ’30s are worth less, $250 to $500; and newer machine-made Kobe dolls are worth the least, $50 to $250.
You might be able to get it through customs IF you can prove it has PRE-ban Ivory. A written appraisal will do, but will cost a couple hundred dollars.
You would NEVER be able to bring it into or ever sell it in or from California where a ban on everything & anything (mentioned in previous article) has been put in placed by our Liberal Leader Jerry Brown & all his Croonies with the crazy PETA people!
Just curious – Given all the issues with ivory, would that impact price or ability to sell an old Kobe doll? Would it get confiscated if bought in Uruguay and brought back to the US?