Diminutive c. 1850 Handmade Preserved Sea Moss Album, New Bedford, MA, 32 Samples dark brown 5 5/8" w x 5"

5 5/8" w x 5" t x 7/8" d and in beautiful aged condition

From curls to cuffs to silhouettes

looking like an easter bunny with a real sense of determination and maybe a little angst

but I'm pretty happy that it exists

with a few tiny brown spots on one side that appear original to its making

Diminutive c. 1850 Handmade Preserved Sea Moss Album, New Bedford, MA, 32 Samples dark brown 5 5/8" w x 5"Small in scale but quite a treasure I think, which I like an extra lot for the fact that the sea moss specimens were collected in the whaling capital of New Bedford, MA, right around the time (c. 1850) that Melville was writing Moby Dick, which was inspired by it. It appears to me that this album, with shell shaped leather cover and tissue paper separating each page, has barely been opened since it was created; each of its 32 specimens is in excellent