Sailor Made Powder Horn: "A Presant for Ann"

Circa 1835: In 1835, the British ship The New York Packet transported six prisoners in Australia, and this beautiful and highly carved 12.75" LONG powder horn was most probably made by one of the sailors on the ship during the Australian voyage because the horn portrays both a named image of the ship and a detailed likeness of an emu (titled "The Wondra" on the horn), a flightless bird native only to Australia. The carver, known only as G.C., also includes an image of himself with "Miss Ann," obviously his long distance love interest, who is holding the powderhorn in her hand, another image of a woman with the inscription "A Presant for Ann" above it, and the initials G.C. and A.P., which symbolizes the relationship between the carver and Miss Ann. Other images on the horn include a whippet, a large anchor, and a garland made up of clover, roses, and thistle. The horn is in excellent condtion with a sliver of loss and cracking along the rim and a small hole into the edge of the rim and cap. It seems odd that a sailor would present his beloved such a masculine item, but the gift must have been well received as it has survived for 190 years. This is a top shelf piece of folk art scrimshaw and is unlike any other sailor's valentine or powder horn that we have seen. Provenance: Ex H. Marshall Goodman Collection