A 19th Century treen snuff box probably made whilst onboard. Carved in the shape of a ships hull with chequered banding around the topsides made from whalebone and baleen. The deck is a hinged lid with a plaque reading 'PHOENIX 1840'. The stern, fore and aft decks inset with sheet copper, the stern reading 'I. B.H'. Great patina. After doing some research there was an American wooden whaler launched in 1821 from Nantucket, Massachusetts called Phoenix. Phoenix and her captain, Perry Winslow, discovered Winslow Reef, northwest of Canton, in 1851. The entire group of Phoenix Islands in the South Pacific are named after a ship, which was active in the area in the 1820s, which may be this ship. Her master was Isaac B Hussey from 1834 - 1840. This could well be his hand. How wonderful.
Measures 10.5cm x 4cm high x 3cm deep.