Nenette & Rintintin
In honor of Memorial Day, the House of Good Fortune is featuring the story of Nenette and Rintintin, a pair of yarn dolls that became popular good luck charms in France at the end of WWI. The dolls are connected by a piece of yarn, and sometimes they have a baby between them named “Petit Lardon.” As usual, the origin story is the subject of debate, but everyone seems to agree that the tiny dolls were given to soldiers as good luck charms that could be pinned onto their uniforms.
Some of the Bonheur Blog’s more attentive readers may assume that there is connection between Rintintin and the name of a certain popular German Shepherd, and you would be right. According to the National Museum of American History:
“In September 1918 Corporal Lee Duncan of the U.S. Army Air Service rescued a German shepherd and her newborn puppies, abandoned in a damaged kennel. He nursed them back to health, then gave several of the dogs to fellow airmen. The two he kept he named Nanette and Rin Tin Tin, as his own good luck charms, and brought them back with him to the U.S. at the end of the war.
“The Americanized Rin Tin Tin, and a few of his descendants, would become American film and television stars from the 1920s through the 1950s. Early in World War II, Rin Tin Tin also served as a mascot in his own right, encouraging Americans to donate their dogs to the military’s newly established K-9 Corps.”
Nenette, Rintintin and their baby. Petit Lardon. From the Museum of Witchcraft and Magic.
The tricky part about Nenette and Rintintin is that they won’t bring you good luck if you purchase them — they must be gifted to you. And, you must never separate them.
Examples of handmade Nenette & Rintintin Dolls from the Imperial War Museums
Oddly terrifying Nenette & Rintintin dolls on a postcard
Drawing of a girl playing with Nenette, Rintintin and Petit Lardon.
As good luck charms, Nenette and Rintintin have a close analog in Pizho and Penda of Bulgaria, who are also a pair of small woolen dolls called Martenitsa. Pizho is predominantly white; and Penda is red. According to Wikipedia: “Tradition dictates that Martenitsi are always given as gifts, not bought for oneself. They are given to loved ones, friends, and those people to whom one feels close.”
Does that sound familiar???
“Beginning on the first of March, one or more are worn pinned to clothing, or around the wrist or neck, until the wearer sees a stork or swallow returning from migration, or a blossoming tree, and then removes the Martenitsa.” (Note: Martenitsi are not always dolls — they can be any set of red and white objects made of yarn.)
While Nenette/Rintintin and Martenitsi are mostly unknown in America today, The House of Good Fortune notes similarities between these poppets and the protective string dolls that have become popular over the last decade.