DALLAS, May 6, 1999/ FW/ --- Before the 1920s, mannequins were routinely called dummies because of their "wooden" expressions.

The need to make them more "realistic" looking arose from the fact that humans like to see things "in their image."

To understand the rise of realism in mannequins, we have to look at the evolution of the mannequin.

Historians agree that display mannequins evolved from four separate figures - (1) the dressmaker form; (2) the artist's model; (3) the European fashion dolls; and (4) the wax sculptures;

The dressmaker form has been around since the time of the Pharoahs, but the modern dressmaker form which were manufactured to the exact measurement of the customer to alleviate the customer from constant fittings did not come into existence until the mid-18th century, around the same time that the sewing machine was invented.

The fashion dolls originated in France, and has been around since the 14th century.

The wax sculpture was an extension of the art of sculpting. Wax was just another medium, same as wood or stone.

All of these four figures, put together gave rise to the realistic mannequins, providing both knowledge and technology to the mannequin sculptor.

Dressmaker forms were used for display in the early 1840s. They were never intended to represent human beings, just a prop to display merchandise. It proved the point that to display fashion, you need something more than a hanger!

In 1894, at the Paris Exposition, German manufacturers introduced the 200-pound wax figures and twenty years later, these wax mannequins were being used in American display windows.

Ironically, it is the papier-mâché heads of the mannequins, and not the wax figures which started the trend towards realism. Papier-mâché-headed mannequins were fitted with realistic glass eyes wherein passers-by felt as if a real person was staring at them.

When the 1920s arrived, mannequin advertising centered on the realistic faces and not the body.

Although realistic mannequins were around before 1930s, it did not gain notoriety until the arrival of Lester Gaba and his beloved Cynthia.

Lester Gaba was soap sculptor turned mannequin artist. During the 1930s, he "created" Cynthia, a realistic mannequin made of plaster of Paris.

Taking his inspiration from the socialites of the day, Cynthia was a "sitting mannequin," elbow on her knees with a cigarette in hand.

Lester Gaba became so fascinated with his creation, that "Cynthia" became his constant companion, bringing her at the Stork Club, rides in the city and the box at the opera.

It was awkward, to say the least bringing Cynthia around New York, needing at least three men to transport her from place to place.

But she looked so exquisite, and "carrying a mannequin around," was eccentric that Lester Gaba's entourage caught the attention of New York's social set.

In short, Cynthia and Lester Gaba was a hit! Couturiers sent her clothes. Cartier and Tiffany lent her jewelry.

But the city's "love affair" with Cynthia would prove to be short lived. The beautiful Cynthia met her demise when she slipped from a chair in a beauty salon and shattered into a thousand pieces!

Cynthia might have gone to mannequin heaven, but her short existence imprinted the beauty of realistic mannequins to the shopping public.