Regarding Sotheby's Tim Tansel powder horn at auction... it was in Jim Dresslar's collection for a number of years, and one of his favorite horns. Jim always wanted to believe it was carved while Lafayette was making his reunion tour of the United States in the 1824-1826 era or thereabouts, and he personally dated it as such. In reality, Tim Tansel's earliest dated horns are 1836...perhaps he made an earlier one, but one that's dated "1836" has a "No. 1" on it which seems to identify it as his first "professional" horn, and its carving would support the assumption since the work is very early for Tim. The Lafayette horn would likely date to the 1836 era, but probably not earlier based on the quality of the carving, i.e. development of the figures, shading technique, etc. on the horn, which is better than on his earliest known horns. It's a nice little horn, re-plugged if I recall correctly, but not quite as early as Dresslar thought it was. There are several known Tansel horns with verses referencing Gen. Lafayette, and a number of other horns with verses about other significant American military heroes. Virtually all are commemorative and made well after the hero earned his stripes.
Shelby Gallien
