Bettina Dorfmann from Germany first set the Guinness World Record for the most extensive Barbie collection in 2005. She overtook Tony Mattia from the UK, who had 1,125 Barbie dolls, with her collection of 2,500 dolls, which since then has grown close to 19,000, many of them rare, the rarest of which is one of the original 1959 Barbies. Dorfmann received her first doll in 1966 when she was just five years old and began collecting in 1993. She has been profiting from exhibiting her dolls and writing books about Barbie. She also has a unique 'doll hospital' where she repairs dolls for others.