Wonderful Old Hand-carved Bird Shaped Box gift for the scholar or for transporting food to

or for transporting food to a temple

It is about as make-do as it gets

I don't think photos fully do justice to this really lovely

plenty of rusting but not much shedding

making it clear the case was made from cigar box wood

Wonderful Old Hand-carved Bird Shaped Box gift for the scholar or for transporting food toI was delighted to find this one in New Hampshire the other day, which I presume was made as a snuff box, 19th c American I would guess. (It would really also be the perfect box for holding the tiny bone dice I just listed!) Such an elegant form suggesting a bird through the sparest of means (it feels to me quite reminiscent of early Native American bird stones), wider for the body and gracefully tapering toward the gently pointing beak. I also love