The history of Berenguer Dolls began over half a century ago in Spain when Jose Berenguer began a lifelong passion for designing dolls in 1944.

By the 1950's Jose Berenguer's dolls had built an excellent reputation for quality craftsmanship and beauty. The most popular during this decade were the Chelito and Pepin dolls.

His passion for doll making and design was passed on to his son Salvador, who was also born in Spain - a country that has inspired many artists. Salvador comes from a family where the gift of sculpting has been passed down through the generations and inherited his family's legacy.

He has personally sculpted many Berenguer doll masterpieces that capture the essence of a child's beauty. He is an expert at recreating the look of innocence and purity that reflect childhood.

He is the creative genius behind the ingenious designs of today's Dolls by Berenguer, now owned by JC Toys. With his sculpting background and a keen eye for detail, Salvador has created countless dolls that reveal the many varied emotions of childhood. He draws his inspiration from everyday life and - closer to home - his own children and grandchildren.

Salvador took over from his father in the 1960's and continued his pleasure of a toil with the same passion and dedication as when he began over 40 years ago.

Today Salvador is Head Sculptor for the company JC Toys which has offices in Florida, Hong Kong and Spain.

JC Toys Group dolls were first introduced to the American market in the early 1980's. You've probably heard of them under another name - they were known by the popular name of BERJUSA .

The Berjusa dolls had a considerable effect on the doll market at the time due to because of their amazingly life-like features and innovative gentle facial sculpts which had never been seen quite like this before. Popular brand names of dolls of the 1980's and later were Tunene and Minene.

Later on that decade, new baby dolls were introduced to the range, like La Newborn and La Baby.

Today JC Toys is an international designer and manufacturer of collectible and specialty dolls, with one of the largest ranges in the world. And the name Berenguer continues to be synonymous with dolls of superior quality and unique design.

That is Salvador Berenguer's legacy.

Berenguer dolls can be found in the UK at Berenguer Collector UK and in the USA at Berenguer Collector USA

Rosemary Greenwood has written this article exclusively for Collector Reborn.