Antique Carved Whimsy Chain with Ball in Round Cage, Interlocking Parts, Rich Patina match safe boot with letters of the alphabet

with letters of the alphabet on one side and hand-colored engraved illustrations on the other

a satisfying thing

) minus the traditional dress

but I just sort of fell in love with this little tin one

just a bit of minor staining/toning to the green ground toward the right edge

Antique Carved Whimsy Chain with Ball in Round Cage, Interlocking Parts, Rich Patina match safe boot with letters of the alphabetYou know I am always on the hunt for whimsies, but haven't found a whimsy chain in quite a while this one of two today, nice old ones, found together, each carved from one piece of wood. I can never quite wrap my head around how one could carve one of these, and especially one such as this with the central ball in cage, and the links to which it is connected, all rotating 360 degrees, as do the terminal pieces of the chain. I'm not sure if there were