L’Ospedale delle Bambole (Doll Hospital) is a restoration workshop in the historic center of Naples that has been caring for the health of toys since 1895.
The activity was started by Luigi Grassi, a set designer for court theaters and puppet theaters. In addition to set design, he was also involved in repairing props and puppets.
One day he was asked to fix a doll: soon word spread, and the workshop was filled with toys for repair. The Doll Hospital was born: today, a full four generations later, this place carries on a family tradition just about taking care of childhood memories.
The atelier is still located on Via San Biagio dei Librai, or “Spaccanapoli,” and is run by Tiziana Grassi: a fourth-generation “doctor”, artisan and Master of Art who, in addition to carrying out the restoration work on the dolls, has made this space an interactive museum open to the public, beloved by citizens, visitors and tourists of all ages, where they can get excited and become children again.
To date, the museum is among the city’s top attractions, hosting an average of 60,000 visitors a year. A story of emotions, memory and precious objects: despite the passage of time, the Dolls’ Hospital continues its “interventions” with respect for traditional craftsmanship, love of beauty and a mission to restore old toys to their lost splendor.
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