OBJECTS Record
Images
Metadata
Catalog Number |
1924.016.001 |
Object Name |
Opener, Letter |
Source |
Nancy Fretageot Boren |
Year Range from |
1863 |
Year Range to |
1924 |
Place of Origin |
Germany, Bavaria, Oberammergau |
Place |
Germany, Bavaria, Oberammergau |
Description |
Paper knife or letter opener. Dark wood. Handle is carved with a flower and stem design, an image of edelweiss according to the card with it. The back surface is flat and plain except for being marked "Oberamergau" with a horizontal bar over the "m". There are no other identifying marks. |
Provenance |
Card: "Paper knife of wood, with carved fleur-de-lis. Made at Oberammergau." Card that was stored with it: "Paper Knife from Oberammergau flower of the edelweiss carved on handle Presented by Mrs Nancy Boren, 1924" |
Notes |
Oberammergau is in Bavaria, Germany. It is noted for its woodcarvers and woodcarvings. Nancy Fretageot was born about 1863, died circa 1938. So this letter opener can't date any earlier than her birth or any later than the donation date. Hence the year range 1863 to 1924. More research might narrow the date range more. From research on the overline: "In German it [overline] is occasionally used to indicate a pair of letters which cannot both be fitted into the available space." "It used [in German] to be common to mark omitted double letters with an overbar, especially for ‘mm’ and ‘nn’." |
Dimensions |
W-1.125 L-9.25 D-0.25 inches |
Material |
Wood |
People |
Boren, Nancy Fretageot |