An 18th century carved and engraved whale bone stay busk Of rounded rectangular form, the love token with incised and blackened decoration of five intertwined pendant ovals containing a bush, a tree, a flowerhead roundel, twin feathers and a star roundel, the arched top with containing a heart pierced by an arrow above a further arrow, the sides with narrow intertwined borders, 35cm high, 4.5cm wide Footnotes: Provenance From the estate of Antony Maitland, illustrator and artist, winner of the Kate Greenaway medal 1961. Stay busks were rigid elements inserted into the front of corsets to help maintain a straight, upright posture. During the 18th century they were commonly made from materials such as wood, ivory, and whale bone. Decorated busks, often incised with floral motifs, dates, or inscriptions, could also serve as sentimental objects and love tokens. Incised whale bone busks were particularly associated with sailors aboard whaling ships, who fashioned them from the the discarded whale bone available to them and presented them as tokens of love and affection. Their use however declined in the early nineteenth century as fashions shifted towards high waisted looser, less structured garments. This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: Y Y Subject to CITES regulations when exporting items outside of the UK, see clause 13. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing