Another old simple horn

[JohnnyM]

Here's a horn I picked up some years ago. Nice simple lines on what I think is a "factory" horn.  Nicely flowing curves.





A quickly executed spout area but still maintaining the overall flow.


Turned and chipped carved butt plug.






Even has some crudely scratched initials.


Overall, a well made, utilitarian piece of equipage whose beauty lies in its simplicity.

Regards,
Johnny

[Tim Crosby]

    A great example, I am wondering, Not taking anything away from the horn. The carving on the neck looks a little crude and the base looks lathe turned and carved or pressed. Could it be an Indian trade horn or a homemade horn using a base from another horn.
 Thanks for taking the time to post the pics, they are good ones.     


 Tim C.

[mr. no gold]

Nice horn, Johnny. Thank you for bringing it to our attention. My guess, by the butt plug, is that it was made in Lancaster, and may well be a factory horn. The spout on this one is a little out of the ordinary, and may have even been modified some, but that is hard to tell, as they bounced around some in their designs. Butts are always pretty consistent though.
The butt plugs are of soft pine and the design was impressed into the wood while it was wet.
I think that someone said that these date to the 1830s and on, until the factory closed.
A really good find of a very collectible horn. Thanks again.
Dick

[JohnnyM]

Tim and Dick,
Your comments/expertise are welcome as is everyone's thoughts.  I tend to think the spout is a user/purchaser modification to the original ring.  I don't know if you can tell in the photos but that small 'groove' carved behind the ring seems to have been done with a gouge of some type as indicated by the semi-circle 'border' and the slight ridges on the side of each cut.  It must have been a very sharp gouge as it seems they were done with one stroke (no overlap).  I don't think many typical users had a sharp gouge on 'em.  If it was scraped or cut with a flat-bladed knife, then it wouldn't surprise me so much. Just my unexpert opinion.  Makes me wonder some if this particular maker, if he be a pro, was particularly expeditious in "crankin' em out".  Time is money, ya know.

I didn't know that these production plugs had their "carving" pressed in.  Thanks for the information.

Interesting thing, while exercising a little "experiential anthropology" that modified grove fits a thin buckskin thong very securely and I don't think a wide strap was used with this horn, at least not where it was fastened to the horn itself. Now, whether the horn had a separate thong/strap or was attached to the shooting bag, well, it's anyone's guess....  I guess.

I just love the overall natural shape/curve of this horn.
Regards,
Johnny