Dutch doll : Corporal J W Robinson, 2/14 Light Field Ambulance

Dutch doll made from woollen felt and cotton wadding. The doll is a girl with plaited yellow hair and a cap embroidered with yellow stars. The brim of the cap is blue at the front and purple at the back with a blue and pink crown. The front brim is held rigid by a piece of wire between the layers of fabric. Her body is made of green felt, to represent a shirt, and she is wearing a red waistcoat embroidered with blue stars which is fastened with a red and blue cord. The doll is also wearing blue wide legged trousers with a wide pink waist band embroidered with a yellow star. Her pointed boots are made from red and green felt and finished around the ankles with a pink band. She also has pink bands around her wrists and a red bow at her neck. All top stitching has been done with yellow cotton. The doll's face is made from stiffened silk with painted eyes, brows, cheeks and lips.

This doll was made by NX83462 Corporal John William Robinson from Young, NSW. Robinson was born in Wagga Wagga in October 1910 and enlisted in the Army on 13 January 1942. He served in New Guinea with 2/14 Light Field Ambulance and was discharged medically unfit on 24 August 1945. Suffering from stomach ulcers and other complaints, Robinson received treatment on several occasions after the war at Concord Hospital in Sydney. During one of these visits he was taught to make dolls as a form of rehabilitation.