Dollhouses can range from a simple one-room cottage to a great multi-levelled castle of intricate design. Some of these houses are modern, others are Colonial, and still others unlike any real house ever made. Here is a short list of the world’s most famous dollhouses from around the world that truly are unique:

Queen Mary’s Doll House – Most enthusiasts see this magnificent dollhouse as the marker to which all other doll houses are measured. Built and designed in 1924 by renowned English architect, Sir Edward Lutyens, the dollhouse was a gift to Queen Mary and the people of England from the King of England. Standing at three and a half feet tall, the house sports two working elevators, electricity, working lights, plumbing with flushable toilets, and a wine cellar with bottles filled with real wine. Over fifteen hundred people had their hand in creating this masterpiece, involving artists and writers from all across the United Kingdom, including Rudyard Kipling who wrote little passages in the miniature books in the Library. The house is currently on display at Windsor Castle, open to the public.

Colleen Moore’s Fairy Castle – This castle was the brainchild of famous 1920’s Hollywood actress Colleen Moore. Completed in the middle of the Great Depression in 1935, the Fairy Castle stands over eight feet high and has all the elegance of a castle plucked right out of a fairy tale. From Cinderella’s Drawing Room with its gold chandelier encrusted with emeralds and pearls to the Weeping Willow in the Magic Garden that sheds real tears into a pool, Queen Mary’s Doll House alone rivals the castle’s detail. In fact, there were only two sets of miniature Royal Doulton china ever made: one for this castle and the other for the Queen’s dollhouse. The Fairy Castle is located at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.

Tara’s Palace – Tara’s Palace was built in 1980 as homage to Titania’s Palace, a popular dollhouse in the 1920’s. It was designed after three of Ireland’s 18th century mansions: Castletown House, Leinster House, and Carton. Many of its twenty-five rooms contain paintings from leading Irish artists and exquisite furniture scaled down to 1:12. The palace is an ongoing project, with additions still being carried out today. This modern day palace is on display at Malahide Castle in Dublin, Ireland.

Thorne Miniature Rooms – This last dollhouse isn’t so much of a dollhouse as it is a series of ninety-nine wonderfully detailed miniature rooms. These models, conceived and constructed by Mrs. Narcissa Niblack Thorne between 1932 and 1940, provide a glimpse into the living conditions of European and American lifestyles from the 13th Century up to 1930. These rooms aren't found in one location and are spread throughout the United States in various museums. Most of them can be found in the Art Institute of Chicago, twenty more at the Phoenix Art Museum, another nine at the Knoxville Museum of Art, and one a piece at the Indianapolis Children’s Museum and the Kaye Miniature Museum in Los Angeles.

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