Wonderful Old Carved Figure, Presumed Very Early Bedpost Doll mercury 12 1/2" across when flat

12 1/2" across when flat

or maybe it housed pages of it at the printing house

A number of months ago I found a lovely vintage glass pitcher with hand-painted bluebirds

smudges and toning here and there

11 3/4" long overall

Wonderful Old Carved Figure, Presumed Very Early Bedpost Doll mercury 12 1/2" across when flatWhen I purchased this, in Maine, I had a bit of a feeling that it might be a very very old carved chess queen, but now I believe it is in fact a bedpost doll, as I have found a very very similar one sold at auction by Pook & Pook, which cites it as 18th century American, likely from New England. (I have included a photo of that one, which is at far right in the image of three sold together.) From what I have read, while some of these dolls were the in