Leather & Parchment Fly Fisherman's Purse Dated 1848

For that special fly fisherman, this is a dream gift.  A handmade leather purse made in the early days of the mid-19th century.  Signed by John Lewis, with his address and the date 1848. There is a die cut of a salmon glued above the date. The purse is leather with decorative embossing near the leather inserts that hold the leather security belt in place.  Contains six separate packets with pockets for lures and lure making bits and bobs.  All are parchment and hand-sewn. Some pockets are marked in ink, names of what the pocket holds, such as Woodcock Brown, Fern, Alder, etc.  Other pockets were marked in lead and the names have all but disappeared.  One booklet has two thick felted wool pads, for hooks, I imagine. These are bound in green twill or similar.  A nice touch: to protect the parchment pockets and their contents ~ the corners of the booklet faces have leather circles to give them a little lift off one another.

In addition to the parchment packets, there are leather compartments for holding documents, paper currency, whatever. There is also an accordian fold of two compartments, each lined in green patterned paper or thin fabric. 

All is secured by a fold-over flap and a belt that goes around the entire purse.  The belt has a buckle, leather over metal.  Miraculously, the belt is not broken and can be buckled securely. 

Condition is good, with overall wear to the leather.  Dry in some places, and the piece has a general fragility. The parchment packets are all in very fine condition, having been protected over the generations by the leather.  This is an exciting, marvelous find ~ a piece of fly fishing history.