Wonderful Old Brass Ruler with Hand-Engraved Numbers quiltedgold but I love it as

but I love it as an object

Tears and wear to the backing paper as evident

as I found one in the collection of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts portraying the death of a general at the Battle of Bunker Hill in 1775

There are a couple of minor splits in the wood on the top/lid and one split in the top interior tray

I just love the photo of this man in his tall bowler and handlebar mustache

Wonderful Old Brass Ruler with Hand-Engraved Numbers quiltedgold but I love it asSuch a treat to find this wonderful old brass ruler yesterday in New Hampshire, with the numbers engraved by hand, perfectly imperfect. The ruler is divided into eights, with one circle at the inch marks, and three at the half inch. I asked a keen and knowledgeable friend about it, who believes it is machinist's rulerthey would often make their own measuring tools (like ladies legs calipers!) so that they could be customized for the specific device