A confident collector of Number One Ponytail vintage Barbie dolls knows that the pitfalls to avoid when seeking to add another beauty to the collection are virtually legion. Collecting vintage Barbie dolls in particular is the kind of field where competition is fierce, claims as to authenticity and condition are sometimes stretched, and the limit on spending only has the sky as the limit.
Since only 350,000 exist, a number one ponytail Barbie is the kind of vintage Barbie doll that is most sought after by seasoned and also novice collectors. The popularity has not been lost on Mattel, the company currently manufacturing Barbie and her friends, and a remake of the doll has been issued, further muddying the water.
Anyone currently on the lookout for this pony tailed vintage Barbie doll will do well to remember some facts that serve to ensure that a hot pursuit will not end in disappointment.
Package
The greenest novice collectors of number one ponytail Barbies in particular are highly susceptible to buying the wrong thing. The dead giveaway is the Barbie/©1958, 1993/Mattel notation which identifies this particular doll as a remake of the vintage Barbie doll. What the package should say – and will have any serious collector salivating with credit card in hand – is Barbie™/Pats.Pend./©MCMLVIII. Beware thewhich reads Barbie® /Pats.Pend./©MCMLVIII and indicates a different kind of pony tailed doll. They are sometimes confused and disappointment sets in quickly.
Head
The hair of this vintage Barbie doll may be blond or brown, the eyebrows have the telltale high arched look that made the 1950s to prominent, and the iris must be white. If the iris is blue, the doll in question is not a number one ponytail vintage Barbie but instead a number three. The doll’s complexion is white; if the doll on display is tanned, the odds are good that it is a number four but not a number one.
Body
This vintage Barbie doll has a solid body and legs with tubing. For greatest authenticity, it should be clad in the proverbial zebra striped bathing suit. Legs devoid of tubing indicate a number two! A hollow body speaks of a number five.
Price
A bona fide number one ponytail vintage Barbie doll in perfect shape and never removed from the box (NRFB) (which should also be in perfect shape) may sell for about $7,800 or an additional $200 or more if it is the brunette model. If there are even minor scratches or wear and tear, the price drops dramatically. The other numbers (two through five) will also fetch a good price, but rarely more $1,500.
Finding this kind of doll takes a lot of online scavenging and by and large it is the auction sites you want to pay attention to. In addition to the foregoing, getting your name and willingness (ability) to pay out into the collectors’ community may get you that out of nowhere email from someone who is looking to sell theirs.
Sources:
http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/public/default.asp?t=1&m;=1&c;=34&s;=262&ai;=47265&ssd;=10/16/2004&arch;=y
http://www.dollreference.com/barbie1.html
Don’t stop here! Read more of Sylvia Cochran’s articles on collecting:
Where to Go for Antique Radio Repair Parts and Clever Reproductions
The What, How, and Where of Antique Tools Collecting
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