Scarce 1853 Merril's New Illuminated Alphabet Book finely carved It measures 11 1/4" across

It measures 11 1/4" across and 2 5/8" tall

but maybe that's just me

I'd probably just fill it with assorted packets of sugar and sugar substitutes to keep on the counter and throw on the breakfast table when having company

then release them from various points to chart their flights (bees fly in a straight line when returning to their hives—a bee line—thus leading the beekeeper to the bounty) though I believe this could also be used as a queen bee carrier

with a bit of green as well

Scarce 1853 Merril's New Illuminated Alphabet Book finely carved It measures 11 1/4" acrossI sure do love alphabets, and happily they've manifested in so many excellent incarnations with unlikely survivors my favorite kind! This is an 1853 copy of Merrill's New Illuminated Alphabet Book, published by Rufus Merrill, Concord, NH, and which I think may have been the first edition, as I can find no earlier reference to it, though I have found later. Paper cover, with beautiful upper and lower case alphabets on the flip, and then each page