What is a Gullah Doll?

Many people have asked the question, What is a Charleston Gullah Doll.

Historically known as bottle dolls, the Charleston Charleston Gullah Doll continues the tradition of the doll making artform of West Africans tribes now known as Gullah People.

The Transatlantic Slave trade forced the migration of millions of African across the Atlantic Ocean to be settled in sea island rice and indigo plantations along the coastline of South Carolina, Georgia and parts of Florida, better know as The Gullah Corridor. These people however displaced kept true to many of their cultural practices, including spirituality, foodways, dance, and art.

In the creation of Charleston Gullah Dolls, artist Roginia "Gina" Watson, tells how the complete doll is such a history lesson in heritage and beauty. "The recycled bottle represents the womb of the Gullah woman, holding firm to the beliefs, traditions, spiritualty, and hope of her people."

Charleston Gullah Dolls are filled firm with the sands of the local Carolina beaches, representing the embrace of the very first thing Gullah People touched upon their arrival to this new land. "Each doll weighs approximately 5lbs each", Gina says, "The weight proves that She's a Girl Southern Girl." The dolls construction also includes a tribal full covering dresswear from head to toe. The covering of a woman's head honors the deity of her connection to God while her full length dress protects her purity before marriage.  

No doll would be complete without it accessories and Gullah Keepsakes continues in educating audiences by adding in Cowrie shell earrings and a Sweet Grass Basket woven purse. 

Every inch of the Charleston Gullah Doll shows charisma and charm in fulfilling to mission to continue in the education, promotion and acknowledgement of the Gullah Geechee People and the history of these handmade must-have Charleston souvenirs of charms.