HITTY'S PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND MEASUREMENTS

CARVING AND FINISH:
Hitty's hair is basically smooth, although there are occasional chips cut out above the forehead and along the top and sides of the head to simulate waves in the hair. Her face is sanded smooth, with no carving marks showing. Her torso is rounded in front and sides but flat on the back.

Her limbs are quite smooth, but the forearms have slight flats and planes indicating knife cuts. The hands have three flats across the back of the finger areas. The shoes are all flats (rather than rounded).

PAINTING:
All exterior surfaces were painted, probably in a flesh tone, although in most areas the paint is heavily worn and faded to a dull gray. Only the inside surfaces of the shoulder and hip joints were left unpainted.

Hitty's hair is painted black. Her eyes have dark (Prussian) blue pupils centered in medium blue irises. The boots are painted black and extend up to mid calf. The remainder of her lower leg is painted white to simulate socks, and there is a thin red line painted just above the knee to simulate a garter.

The current finish is glossy in places, which could be from an original over-varnish or from skin oils from years of handling.

It is not clear whether or not any undercoat of gesso was applied first. If there was any, it was a very thin coat. It looks like only a flesh colored paint was applied directly over the wood

HANDS:
Her hands are described as "spoon-like." There are no lines or indentations to suggest fingers, although there are the three flat planes mentioned earlier.

BOOTS:
The boots are simply carved with flat planes. There are no heels, but the toe area is cut up from the bottom at an angle.

JOINTS:
Upper arms to Shoulders: The joint area on the torso is cut flat, parallel to the vertical axis of the torso. The mating area of the upper arms is also cut flat, but at a slight angle so that the distance between the fingertips between the two arms is 1.5" apart.

Thighs to hips: The flat cuts on the sides of the hips at the bottom of the torso angle in towards the crotch, and the mating surfaces on the thighs are cut at an angle so that the legs fall parallel to each other. These angles, however, require leaving space between the thighs and hips when attached straight down (as in standing), otherwise it will be impossible to bend her legs up for sitting. It is best to set the length of the hip/leg dowel holding Hitty in the sitting position.

The arms and legs move together as pairs. Each is joined by wooden dowels approximately 3/16" in diameter that go through holes in the shoulders and hips. The tips of the dowels show through the outer surfaces of the arms and legs, but are sanded smooth to fit the outer contour of the arms and legs.

Both the arms and legs can swing back and forward, although the arms are blocked by the dress from moving backward. Limb movement is fairly loose, particularly in the hip joints.

There are pegs at the bottom of the legs that stick through to the bottom of the shoes to hold them on.

The head and torso were made of two pieces of wood and joined together at the shoulders. It is assumed that the head is glued to the torso as it does not turn.

MEASUREMENTS: (All are stated in decimal inches, taken with a digital caliper)
Total Height when standing: 6.25

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