Carving of George Washington?

[222]

Overall it is 2.75in x 2.5in x 1in

The bust carving is roughly 1.5in x .75in

Weighs 5.2oz

The material feels dense and waxy...steatite /soapstone? The backside is covered with shallow striations/grooves all going in the same direction. It has scattered pitting all over except within the carved bust area. I read that soapstone is not porous, so I'm not sure if it is pitting due to age or made of a porous material. I read that soapstone was used for silver and pewter molds.

I believe it is too large to have been used for sealing letters with wax. I have seen framed miniature profiles of George Washington made of wax that are from the early 1800s...maybe this was a mold for that purpose?

My questions are: How old do you think it is? What could it be made of? What was it made for or is it just folk art? Have you seen anything comparable that could steer me in the right direction? Any suggestions on a type of expert or museum I should reach out to?

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

 

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[wvwildman]

very nice mold no idea what its made of where did ya find it

 

[HutSiteDigger]

What you have i think is a George Washington Medallion type artifact if you notice the picture i posted, that is a portrait of a George Washington Medallion and that is the same image i see on your artifact and that is the type of image people used to make a medallion of GW. I do not know how the artifact is been kept or stored over the years but it appears to be not of 18th century! they manufactured this image of him all the way up until today... if i had to say it looks like someone could have made this in late 19th century or 20th century but you can tell whoever had it or has had it is taken good care of it.

 

[sasnz]

When you say

"I believe it is too large to have been used for sealing letters with wax. I have seen framed miniature profiles of George Washington made of wax that are from the early 1800s...maybe this was a mold for that purpose?"

How big is it exactly? Take another photo with a ruler!