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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;charlie cheswick, post: 11092279, member: 853&quot;]quoted from Copie (a bit scatty at this time of night <img src="styles/default/xenforo/smilies/rolleyes.png" class="mceSmilie" alt=":rolleyes:" unselectable="on" />)</p><p><br /></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">Identification and quick verdict</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">This looks like a pocket or miniature Book of Common Prayer — a personal devotional/prayer volume made to be carried and used daily. The leather cover, decorative embossing, and an ornate metal clasp strongly suggest a 19th-century or early 20th-century pocket edition, often produced for private devotion, travel, or as a gift.</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff"><br /></span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">Transcription of the inscription</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">To Susanne White</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">Presented by her Mamma</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">December 25, 1867</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">What this tells us</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">•&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; Personal gift given on Christmas Day 1867, likely from mother to daughter.</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">•&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; Date confirms mid Victorian era, which matches a pocket Book of Common Prayer with an ornate clasp.</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">•&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; Adds provenance and sentimental value because it ties the object to an identified recipient and occasion.</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">Implications for dating and provenance</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">•&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; The inscription gives a secure terminus ante quem of 1867 for the book’s presence in private hands.</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff"><br /></span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">Quick assessment</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">The inscription reading either &quot;December 25, 1864&quot; or &quot;December 25, 1849&quot; is plausible for a mid‑19th century pocket prayer book. The difference comes down to how the handwritten numerals were formed and the medium (faded ink or pencil) making the middle stroke(s) ambiguous.</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">Handwriting features that make 1849 believable</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">•&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; The tail and loop shapes of mid‑19th century longhand often give a 4 a triangular or open‑top appearance that can resemble a 9 when faded.</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">•&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; A 9 written with a small closed loop and a long tail can, under abrasion or light pencil, look like a 4 with a faint cross‑stroke.</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">•&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; If the final digit has a small inward curl and a darkened centre, that usually indicates a 9 rather than a 4.</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">•&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; Pencil or very faded ink softens cross strokes and diagonals, increasing the chance of misreading.</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff"><br /></span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">Provenance chain: your earlier image showing a 1867 presentation inscription to Susanne White establishes at least one owner in 1867; if that same volume also bears &quot;Lucene Viste ... December 25, 1864&quot; it fits a use-history of 1849 → 1864 → 1867, but it cannot be later than the book’s publication date.</span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff"><br /></span></p><p><span style="color: #0000ff">Transcription for catalog: &quot;Lucene Viste; from her Mamma; December 25, 1849&quot; (if you accept 1849 as the reading) or &quot;Lucene Viste; from her Mamma; December 25, 1864&quot; (if you prefer the other reading).</span></p><p><br /></p><p>god knows mate, might be something of note in there though[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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