Beautifully Shaped Stone (Tool?) with Incised 1843 bucher display Heavy iron hairpin legs welded

Heavy iron hairpin legs welded to the top perimeter

This little needle book make have seen better days

An lip of grout around edges as pictured

who is generally interpreted as representing Marine

which I believe was originally a purse

Beautifully Shaped Stone (Tool?) with Incised 1843 bucher display Heavy iron hairpin legs weldedI really don't know if this stone served a function, though I have to think that it did it has too long and smooth of a bottom edge, and fits too perfect in one's grip not to have been used for something! And one has to imagine that the J. D who took the time to carefully caved his initials and the year 1843 into it did so because it was an important thing to him. I am sure someone out there can identify the use my grabbing it (and not letting it go)