Pilgrim Boy & Girl Antique Porcelain Dolls by JDK, Kestner Dolls 1820-1938 German, Johann Daniel Kestner Jr. (JDK) of Waltershausen, Thuringia, Germany began making papier mache and wood dolls and toys as early as 1816. Kestner eventually went on to employ nearly three quarters of the inhabitants of the Waltershausen region which earned him the nickname "King Kestner". In 1858 J.D. Kestner passed away and his grandson Adolf eventually took over the running of the company, around 1860 Kestner produced wax over papier mache doll heads, by 1860 they acquired the Ohrdug porcelain factory and began to produce the bisque dolls known by collectors today. Kestner leather kid bodies may have a green label Celebrated, Excellence, Excelsior, Marvel, Par Excellence or Perfection along with the Kestner crown and streamer label. Marked on Back of Heads J.D.K. 260