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Recently came into possession of this bookmark hallmarked for S Blanckensee & Son 1925 but I can't for the life of me figure out what its additional purpose would be. My best guess is to take some form of measurement? The item is also marked Dudley & Cox Ltd Southsea. Any thoughts/ideas would be most welcome.
How big is this item? Could a coloured cord, for when not in use, have gone through the hole?
Dudley & Cox were near the end of a long line silversmiths & jewellers, but were also involved in the decoration of Navel Swords. Are all the markings part of the decorative tradition? The following is from a Portsmouth History "paper" on line.
"Over half of the 250 pages of "The Naval Officer's Sword" are devoted to details of the sword-smiths, sword-cutlers, goldsmiths, jewellers, lacemen, tailors, outfitters and accoutrement makers known to have been involved in the buying and selling of swords from the 18C to the early 1950s. They are grouped according to locality which allows us to publish the names of all the businesses in Portsmouth to which any self-respecting naval officer would have turned in pursuit of a really modern blade. They are listed below, the dates shown relate to the period each business is known to have been involved in the sale of swords."
In May 1914 Mr. James Dudley died and in 1938 the business was purchased by Dimmers Ltd. 44 Palmerston Road, and the two establishments continued under one management until January 1941 when both were destroyed by enemy action. After the war the business restarted as:- Dimmers Ltd Jewellers 1946-1954 45 Osborne Rd., Southsea
There are other references to "Dimmers" on our Forum.
Thank you so much for the information and your thoughts. Perhaps in that case it is something to do with seafaring and taking measurements while at sea - perhaps for cartography? (as well as being a handy bookmark). The item is roughly 6.5cm long, 2.5cm across & the actual hole has a diameter of roughly 1cm so would probably fit on a thin cord.
Definitely some food for thought and an avenue to pursue.
