Lovely Antique Brass 6 Inch Folding Ruler small tin gives a sense of forward

gives a sense of  forward motion to the whole scene

and the raised sword against flag of the soldier below (who also looks to me quite like a French revolutionary

perhaps in part because of the fabulous nature of the platypus itself

which I must say has quite an animated

much better in person

Lovely Antique Brass 6 Inch Folding Ruler small tin gives a sense of forwardThe tinier the ruler the better as far as I'm concerned all the better for measuring little things! I've had a couple of 6 inch folding rulers made of bone, but don't believe I've ever coming across a brass one, and this one feels quite special. No mark anywhere on it that I can see, and with just the 1st and last inch divided into quarters, the rest just into halves. 19th c. I believe, and I imagine made for a very specific purpose, perhaps for an