[Franklin, Benjamin]

[Miniature Folk Art Portrait of Benjamin Franklin Engraved on Horn and Mounted in a Wooden Frame]

[N.p. N.d.]. Horn engraving, 2 inches round. Mounted in a dark wooden frame 3.75 inches square. Small squares of horn with small metal stars in each corner of the frame. Light wear and some scuffing to frame. Wire for hanging on verso. About very good. Item #3590

An incredibly charming folk art engraving of Founding Father Benjamin Franklin, engraved on a round slice of horn and mounted in a wooden frame with star adornments at the corners. The image is of a younger, bewigged Franklin, rather than the older version of the gentleman with which most of us are familiar from our currency. This cataloguer believes the present image to have been based on Benjamin Wilson's 1759 painting of Franklin at age fifty-three. The artist has scratched Franklin's name into the edge of the image, though sadly we find no other identifying marks as to the maker. Our knowledge of such items is rather limited, and we have not made a guess as to the date of this object, though the frame seems like it may be a mid- to late-19th century production.

Price: $1,000.00