Antique Sailor Made Scrimshawed Ruler and Presumed Busk Fragment photo of girl holding mirror There is clipped newspaper text

There is clipped newspaper text glued ( and shellacked over) to the piece on one side

but rarer to see a figural one

PS Gorge and I got dreadful skairt Sunday afternoon

but I think they're beautiful

with a small clean tear along the right edge at the red shed roof

Antique Sailor Made Scrimshawed Ruler and Presumed Busk Fragment photo of girl holding mirror There is clipped newspaper textI'll never resist a handmade ruler, all the more so a sailor whaler made one, this one measuring seven inches. I found it along with what I believe is a fragment from a busk a common form for scrimshawing, to bring home to wives and sweethearts for use in corsets. The decoration on this one is minimal, but very fine, perhaps meant for a name to be engraved inside of it. Earlier than later 19th century New England I believe, lovely things. Ruler