Beautiful Condition (and Brilliantly Spinning) 19th Century 8 Sided Bone Teetotem book plate drawing A piper piping away

A piper piping away

There is a split to the wood at the back of one shoulder as documented and maybe he once had an hood back there

or for any fan of tabletop furniture--this is a beautifully constructed little wooden carpenter's table/workbench

so they evoke a particular feeling for me--and the sunny yellow of this striped one feels like coming home from the swimming pool in summer to dinner on the patio

especially brilliant gold ones like these

Beautiful Condition (and Brilliantly Spinning) 19th Century 8 Sided Bone Teetotem book plate drawing A piper piping awayI've had a couple of 19th century bone teetotem in the shop previously those actually purchased from the same collection as this one in Pennsylvania and will continue to scoop them up when I can, though usually they are quite preciously priced. The term teetotum encompasses tops like this made for games ranging from 4 to 12 sides, marked with numbers or symbols (a dreidel is a type of teetotum.) This one is eight sided, and i believe would have used