"Anyone got any ideas on what this is? http://tinyurl.com/yju5sb9";
It reminds me of a form of drafting tool. If you were making prickings, or replicating a pre-existing lace, then you would have pinholes in the various placements in (what appears to be) the ivory plate, and the moveable arms would replicate angles of corners or turns in flowers, leaves, monograms, motifs, etc.? Then you could move it to the next location to duplicate or repeat sizes, etc. It reminded me of drafting tools an architect would use on a smaller scale, or larger ones a carpenter/contractor would use, of which I have had only some use/exposure to, but successfully, as they are very helpful. It reminds me of tatting shuttles in the abstract, in that practical ones were plain, but as society "advanced," there was a point where the fancier and more elaborate and embellished the shuttle, the more coveted it would be (though simple ones work as well, if not better). <smile> Perhaps this is an overly embellished tool, at a time when a less educated group of people were not versed in protractors and compasses, etc. I have seen toothpicks from some time back, perhaps not as far back as this, and they were often flat and wide, but also pointed as today's wooden toothpicks were, but not quite as large and wide as this one. I do not see what purpose the pierced edged "ivory" would serve though, so would be inclined to think of it as having the ability to hold/anchor something, which to my needlework mind would be; a pin, and when working, would need to be accessible from various angles, depending upon which way one was working of measuring from to resist tension. The curves and circumference would enable this. FWIW Susan Reishus - To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [email protected]. For help, write to [email protected]
