Original U.S. Pre-Civil War USS Merrimack Sailor Scrimshawed Shell “Keepsake” with Outstanding Motif of Ship - Burned & Was Rebuilt as CSS Virginia in 1861 & Fought in First Engagement Between Ironclad Warships colts and both are quite ornamented

and both are quite ornamented

The serial # 379403 indicates production in 1888

but it is also a replacement

the Franco-Prussian War of 1870/71

an infantryman who had distinguished himself in World War I

Original U.S. Pre-Civil War USS Merrimack Sailor Scrimshawed Shell “Keepsake” with Outstanding Motif of Ship - Burned & Was Rebuilt as CSS Virginia in 1861 & Fought in First Engagement Between Ironclad Warships colts and both are quite ornamentedOriginal Item. One of a Kind. This is one of the most outstanding keepsakes we have ever offered, a gorgeous rainbow troca spiral shell taken by a U. S. Sailor in the late 1850s, and scrimshawed with glorious motifs of the USS Merrimack, along with small panels with flags. One panel reads Executed with a common penknife. The USS Merrimack was a steam frigate, best known as the hull upon which the ironclad warship CSS Virginia was constructed during