Hairline cracks occur very frequently in the heads of antique biqsue dolls. A hairline is a very small crack, often undetectable to the naked eye which can only be seen with a magnifying aid, or a black light put in the head of the doll. Sometimes these fine cracks don't even appear on both sides of the bisque. Hairline cracks will devalue a doll, but much less than a major crack would. Also, a hairline in the back of the head of a doll is seen as much less serious than a hairline on the front of the doll's face.
Cracks
A crack can be a hairline fracture gone awry, or damage from the doll dropping or hitting something. A crack in the bisque can be seen with the naked eye. If a crack is on the front of a doll's face, the doll loses a great deal of value A very small crack in the rim of a doll's head or at the bottom of the neck of the doll is less serious, but it is damage that might spread over time. All cracks devalue a doll; the severity and placement of the crack will determine how much.
Firing Flaws
Firing flaws can be several different types of damage that occur when the bisque "greenware" is fired in a kiln at very high temperatures (over 2,000 degrees farenheit). One type of firing flaw is a hariline crack that occurs at the time of firing. Genrally I can find it hard to determine if a hairline is a firing flaw or later damage, but some collectors believe that a firing flaw hairline is less likely to spread into a larger crack. Another type of firing flaw can be deformation of the head shape. The most common type of firing flaw are black spots. These spots are from dirt or soot flying around in the kiln (the kiln's were the sizes of small rooms). The dirt or soot became imbedded in the greenware, causing a black spot or spots in the doll's bisque face. Black spots generally do not affect the value of a doll, unless they are very large and in a prominent spot on the doll's face.
Bisque Restoration
The final type of damage is restoration to the doll's bisque or porcelain. Bisque restoration is generally only underdaken if there has been a large crack or shattering or breakage to a part of the bisque. Although some restoration artists can do amazing work, you can generally find a restoration when inspecting a doll by putting a black light in the doll's head. The restored area will be opaque instead of translucent. This is not to be confused with opqcity caused by plaster setting the doll's eyes, or items settin tounges, etc. Values of nearly all doll's with restored bisque are much lower, especially since you often can't tell how extensive the damage is. It is considered dishonest to sell a restored doll that you know is restored ( there are many talented restoration artists out there) , and not disclose the restoration to the buyer.
