~ Napoleonic Prisoner Of War Hand Carved Set Of Bovine Bone Dominoes c1803-1815 ~
A lovely set of dominoes and container hand carved from cow bone made by prisoners of war during the Napoleonic wars of 1803-1815.
During the Napoleonic wars, many prisoners held across Europe were permitted to make objects to amuse themselves and even to sell to allow them a better standard of food. Items were crafted in materials which were easily accessible, such as straw, wood and in this case cow (bovine) bone left over from a meal.
This set consists of 27 tiny dominoes along with a barrel shaped container.
The dominoes have indented spots filled in with a black paint substance and a horizontal red line across each.
The container is in the form of a barrel with tapered ends. It has been beautifully carved with pierced decoration with a domino style motif to either side.
The container has an insert of material, most likely a later addition put in to hold the pieces in place due to some damage sustained to the piece.
~ Dimensions ~
Each domino measures approximately 8mm by 17mm.
The barrel has a diameter of 2.5cm and a length of 6cm.
Together with the dominoes weigh 20.1g.
~ Condition ~
The barrel has a couple of areas of damage due to its frail nature, but is mostly intact and in a good condition.
The dominoes are all undamaged and in their original state apart from one which has had extra dots painted upon it.
The barrel was designed to screw together but the thread has had a little wear over time so no longer screws into place. Despite this the two pieces fit together and stay together quite well.
#2175