were done by Erastus Salisbury Field (1805-1900)
from the period during which they were teaching at the University of New Hampshire
Seems quite possibly a rank badge
I purchased it from a dealer who had purchased it
his rear cocked a bit to the the left
Scarce 1853 Merril's New Illuminated Alphabet Book old handmade wooden frame were done by Erastus SalisburyI sure do love alphabets, and happily they've manifested in so many excellent incarnations with unlikely survivors my favorite kind! This is an 1853 copy of Merrill's New Illuminated Alphabet Book, published by Rufus Merrill, Concord, NH, and which I think may have been the first edition, as I can find no earlier reference to it, though I have found later. Paper cover, with beautiful upper and lower case alphabets on the flip, and then each page