Before Mattel wowed the world with Barbie, Madame Alexander was the premier doll manufacturer in the United States. Renowned for its many firsts in the doll-making world, Madame Alexander dolls are a hot commodity on the auction block, as collectors look for hard-to-find dolls to add to their roster. But like most collectibles, Madame Alexander dolls' values are highly dependent on how many people are interested and how deep their pockets are.
5 Valuable Madame Alexander Dolls to Admire
Whether you're just now dipping your toes into doll collecting or you've been a big fan of these dainty dolls for years, Madame Alexander has an impressive catalog of dolls to choose from. And these dolls from their historic roster are worth making a spot in the curio cabinet for.
| Madame Alexander Dolls | Recent Sales Price |
| 1955 Bridal Lucille Ball | $8,750 |
| 1955 Cissy Doll with Wardrobe | $5,000 |
| 1939 Composition Scarlett O'Hara | $1,700 |
| 1984 Set of 6 Little Women Dolls | $105 |
| 1998 Sleeping Beauty | $45 |
1955 Bridal Lucille Ball
The most valuable Madame Alexander dolls all come from the 1950s, and one such impressive sale was this 1955 Bridal Lucille Ball doll. You couldn’t escape Lucille Ball and the I Love Lucy show at the time, making it a natural media tie-in fit for the doll company. But few of these dolls have made it to the 2020s, so their $8,000+ price tag makes sense.
1955 Cissy With Wardrobe
Undoubtedly, Madame Alexander’s Cissy doll — considered by many to be America’s first fashion doll – is the most valuable of their vintage collection. Over the years, the company made many Cissy iterations, and each of them sells for thousands of dollars. For example, this 1955 Cissy doll, with her original wardrobe, was going for $5,000 on eBay.
1939 Composition Scarlett O’Hara
One of Madame Alexander's most iconic tie-in series was its collection of Gone with the Wind dolls. For decades, the company has made GWTW doll merch, but the most valuable dolls in this series were made the year the movie was released. Because they’re from the 1930s and particularly delicate, few examples have survived. Naturally, this 1939 Composition Scarlett O’Hara doll would sell for $1,700 online.
1984 Set of 6 Little Women Dolls
Unfortunately, post-1950s Madame Alexander dolls just aren’t as collectible as their older sisters are. That being said, you can still make a couple hundred bucks off of them so long as you stick to selling them in sets as opposed to individually.
Dolls from the 70s or 80s won’t sell for more than $50 by themselves. But, if you find completed sets of various series, you’re looking at higher price points. Take this set of six Little Women dolls from 1984, for example. They sold for $105, which is much higher than they’d go for by themselves.
1998 Sleeping Beauty
Another way that newer vintage Madame Alexander dolls can get a boost in price is coming from a popular IP or from an anniversary line. Collectors love a commemorative release (looking at you Beanie Babies), and Madame Alexander doll lovers are no exception. It’s the exact reason that this 75th anniversary Sleeping Beauty doll from 1998 sold for almost $50 on eBay despite being pretty new and otherwise unnoteworthy.
What Makes Madame Alexander Dolls Valuable?
You don't have to be a seasoned doll collector to be able to determine antique doll values. Madame Alexander dolls' price tags are contingent on these factors:
- Age
- Condition
- Rarity
- Desirability
- Condition of original clothing and accessories
- Presence of the attached wrist tag
Because many Madame Alexander dolls were created using the same face molds and body styles, sometimes it's nearly impossible to distinguish which dolls in their historic catalog you've got. That's where original costumes, accessories, boxes, and wrist tags come in handy. Having these identifiers present makes them much more collectible, since they can be easily authenticated and, in turn, worth a lot more money than those that don't have them.
Things to Know Before Selling Vintage Madame Alexander Dolls
Aside from doll shows and the odd antiques store, your best bet for selling old Madame Alexander dolls is online auctions and marketplaces. Of course, sites like eBay, Etsy, and Mercari come to mind for most newbie sellers. However, consider auction sites like Liveauctioneers or Ruby Lane, too.
Also, keep these things in mind when you're getting ready to list a vintage Madame Alexander doll for sale:
- You can ask for a higher price if you've got the original wrist tags, boxes, and wardrobe intact.
- The most collectible ones on the market are from the 1950s, and the closer to present you get, the less valuable the dolls are.
- These dolls are fragile, so you'll want to package them carefully if you're shipping them to a buyer.
- The market fluctuates, so your doll(s) might not get sold for months. It's not that your price is necessarily too high. It could be that there's just not a lot of buyer interest.
Resources to Help You Price Your Old Madame Alexander Dolls
If you want to know a little more about the dolls in your care and how much they're worth, then you should look into getting one of the many published price guides. You can find many excellent price guides for Madame Alexander dolls available online, including:
- Madame Alexander Dolls: Price Guide by A. Glenn Mandeville and Benita Cohen Schwartz
- Madame Alexander 2010 Collector's Dolls Price Guide by Linda Crowsey
- Collector's Encyclopedia of Madame Alexander Dolls 1948-1965 by Linda Crowsey
- Madame Alexander Store Exclusives And Limited Editionsby Linda Crowsey
- Madame Alexander's Ladies of Fashion by Marjorie Uhl
Another valuable digital resource for Madame Alexander doll collectors is Doll Values, a simple-to-use database listing approximately 5,300 Madame Alexander dolls. To search for the current doll values, input a keyword pertaining to the doll, its name, or part of the doll's box number.
Get Your Mantel All Dolled Up
Whether you're a serious doll collector or have a few treasured Madame Alexander vintage dolls from your childhood and want to expand your collection, being aware of current Madame Alexander doll values will help you get the best bang for your buck on that next beautiful addition to your doll shelf.
