Fine Baton or Officer’s Swagger Stick carved from the tusk of a Narwhal (1800 to 1900 England)

Narwhal

See: Finch & Co catalogue no.15, item no.49, for a walking cane fashioned from the tusk of a Narwhal

For long believed to be the mythical unicorn’s horn and accredited with possessing magical properties, narwhal tusks still hold a fascination for modern man. A relative of the Beluga or white whale Narwhal live in the icy waters of the Arctic and can now only be legally hunted by the Inuit Eskimo who are granted a quota of one thousand a year.

A Fine Baton or Officer’s Swagger Stick carved from the tusk of a Narwhal topped with an Ivory cap initialled ‘AR K.D.G.’ (King’s Dragoon Guards)
Old smooth silky patina
Circa 1850 – 60

Size: 73cm long – 28¾ ins long