Antique Carved Burl Wood Bird, Presumed Native American Woodlands, Ex. Axtell Collection brass key but there is a "3"

but there is a "3" carved on the underside of his tail

Crusty old white painted surfaces

both men wear crosses on their labels

perhaps newly betrothed (or just married

5 5/8" in diameter x 5 5/8" tall

Antique Carved Burl Wood Bird, Presumed Native American Woodlands, Ex. Axtell Collection brass key but there is a "3"A bit of a mystery, this bird, but such a beautiful thing, which came from the collection of "Smitty" Axtell, who was a great lover of carved treen objects. Carved of burl wood I believe, it feels to me Native American, bearing a strong resemblance to birds carved on effigy pipes and ladles, but I don't know for certain, and the reason for the holes carved down the back and up the belly is unknown, though it would seem likely it functioned as a tool