Polly Este's Rewards of Merit, Southborough, MA, 1827! wooden inlaid box I'm always on the lookout

I'm always on the lookout for beautiful vintage Japanese fans

with the interplay of the engraving and the coloration making them feel both unusual and really rather exquisite

but it looks to me perhaps to be made of porcelain

I'd be inclined to keep it nearby to use for herding human companions

Polly Este's Rewards of Merit, Southborough, MA, 1827! wooden inlaid box I'm always on the lookoutIt's a rare day that I come across a reward of merit or three as early as these, and even less frequently do I come across an entirely handmade one. Clearly Polly Este, or someone who loved her, was proud of her accomplishments, managing to keep these safe and sound and together for just about 200 years. I have a definitive record for Polly, born Aug. 30, 1818 in Southborough, Massachusetts, daughter of Solomon Este. She married Henry Sumner Wheeler