Thank you for contacting Mearto with your appraisal inquiry.

It is a beautiful raven rattle. The decorations and carvings are very decorative and makes the rattle very special. Such rattles are being offered at auction and usually sell for a very high price depending on the origin, quality of the carving, paint, provenance and the condition.

If your raven rattle is original dating from the second half of the 19th century the estimate would be 6000-8000 US$, and perhaps even a higher selling price depending on the interest and if there is any provenance to be added to the rattles history.

Yours looks to be in good condition with beautiful colours and carvings, however the wood does not appear as old as mid 1800s, and the rope on the handle looks unused and without tarnish from more than 150 years. Whenever there is a high price on particular items and antiques there are also many fakes made and it is difficult to tell the real ones from the fakes based on photographs. This is one of the main reasons why provenance is so important to ensure new buyers of the originality and history of an item.
My suggestion would be to show the Raven rattle to an expert on native american indian art. They should be able to determine whether it is a souvenir raven rattle or one dating from the mid 1800s.

The estimate provided is for a well-advertised specialised auction, where I believe the raven rattle, if original, has the best chance of realising its fullest potential.

Please let me know if you have any additional questions. I’m happy to help.
Thank you