Tanjore dolls? Who are they? :)

Hey folks!

I've had them for a while and never had time to find the information on them. Bought them from an antique shop in Sweden.
Google led me to Tanjore dolls, but I would like to know more about them. They seem old and not tourist pieces, but I could be wrong.
I think they are made of plaster, but could be wrong again. Any ideas when these were made? Any info or a history lesson would be so highly appreciated
They are about 18 cm (7 inches) tall.


Thanks so much!
Erik

 

Here is a bit I found out about them. I can't begin to guess the age, but hopefully this helps.

There are two versions of the doll – the tilting version and the bobble head version; in the Tamil language, the tilting doll is known as the “Uruttu Bommai.” The dolls (Picture A) mostly come as a pair representing the king and queen of the royal dynasties who ruled Thanjavur. They work on the principle of equilibrium, which decides the course of their movements. The upper part of the doll is hollow whereas the bottom of the doll is structured such that it is heavy, curved (with a hemispherical base), and also designed in such a way that it will not topple over when external force is applied: it oscillates slowly and comes back to a stable position. These oscillations generate a dance-like appearance in the dolls, with slow oscillations and the center of gravity working with the total weight of the doll for it to move beautifully. It is quite fascinating to see how the doll’s center of gravity was identified way back in the early 19th century, in addition to how this concept evolved over time into the bobble head version.

The whole article is here.
https://tamilculture.com/my-native-treasure

 

Thank you so much. Very interesting read

 

Roly Poly...........

https://www.google.com/search?q=rol...-fAxoQ_AUoAnoECAEQBA&biw=867&bih=559&dpr=1.75