Poetic (and Anthropomorphic) 19th Century Wooden Bootjack with Hanging Hole Worn Through antique parcheesi as marked on one side

as marked on one side of the brass end

Surface cracks (more pronounced in photos than in person) small ding and some flaws indigenous to the stone and to the carving as documented

but sewn binding is holding well

In addition to variation in the shape of the legs and feet

There is a gold foiled "Made in Switzerland" sticker on the back of the box with the printed number 6349

Poetic (and Anthropomorphic) 19th Century Wooden Bootjack with Hanging Hole Worn Through antique parcheesi as marked on one sideFound in southern Maine this week, I think this is really beautiful, and quite poetic, too. It is a 19th century bootjack, which was used so much that the hanging hole at the narrow end wore all the way through, leaving that open curve. I love the primitive elegance of the resulting form, which also reads like a body, arms (or open mouth, or claw) extending from one end, legs from the other. And turn it over, there's a face! The wood itself shows a