Hi Folks, I thought you all might enjoy some photos of a big horn, and may be able to answer some questions for me. I have done some research, but have come up zero. Here is what I know about this horn (more photos down lower).....
My great uncle Leslie Hagen was in the US Cavalry from the '20's through the war. In the late '30's he was involved in a project looking at railroading in Iceland. For whatever services he rendered, King Christian X of Iceland gave my uncle this horn. It is a big one, about 14" around the long side. The oval base plug is about 3 inches across. It is"engraved" for lack of a better term. In other words, it is not scratched-in like scrimshaw, it is relief engraved like the lock plate on a fancy European shotgun. It looks fairly Nordic to me, and that makes sense as Denmark owned Iceland until the 20th century.
The bird appears to be the Gyrfalcon, the official national bird of Iceland.
No idea how old it is. The tip needs a fat stopper. About 3/8" diameter.
The base plug looks to be walnut, painted black. A lot of that paint is worn away. It had a screw-in plug/knob that is missing. I can see how wide it was at the base as it wore away some paint when screwed in.
Does anyone have any idea if this horn is from Iceland, or more likely Denmark who owned Iceland until the 20th century? Any idea what the plug or stopper would have looked like? The Icelandic or Danish horns I see are flat ended with a lot of attached metal.
He also had a cup, presumably from the town of Glion in Montreux, Switzerland. It has an inset horn bottom. I am guessing this was a tourist item, picked up during WWII.
The word and stag look etched or burned in. I am thinking etched as they are more translucent than the rest of the cup when held to the light.
I look forward to opinions and comments. :-) Best wishes, Marc
