Ivory Pocket Diary with Weekly Leaves 

Description

Ivory Pocket Diary with Weekly Leaves 

Wonderful mid-19th Century Ivory Day diary, composed of seven hinged leaves—each engraved at the top with the days of the week from Monday through Saturday (Sunday absent, as was typical of many 19th-century work and trade diaries). Each thin ivory panel opens fan-style from a brass hinge and is fitted with a small shield-shaped clasp and decorative mounts. The surfaces bear period handwritten notations in pencil and ink, recording daily accounts and expenses. These ephemeral jottings, still legible, speak to its use as a practical personal organizer during the mid-Victorian era. Such pieces were intended to be written upon in pencil and later wiped clean, but in this example, the inscriptions have been preserved. 

Dimensions: Panels approx. 4” x 2” (when closed). Condition: Very good, with light toning and edge wear consistent with age and use. The ivory has mellowed to a pleasing patina. Silver mounts remain intact with minor handling marks. Ivory “eternal” or “perpetual” day diaries combine both the elegance of personal luxury goods with the documentary value of recorded daily life. This example, retaining its original notes, represents a survivor from the antebellum to Civil War period. 

Inventory Number: PER 470