Naval art?

[Son of a gun-ner]

My father was a gunner in north Africa until that campaign was over. Then he transferred onto North Atlantic convoy support vessels as a gunner. During which time he was taken off the ship's to train gunners in England twice, second time in collaboration with beach landing practice. Finally ending his service not long after the war as a member of the royal artillery.

Anyway, I forgot I had this little trinket stashed away, which had a small cabinet/bureau key attached to it, not sure if the key holds any significance, it was attached with, some kind of pre cable tie plastic tie, I can only assume was a later 60/70's repair, or to attach the key at that latter time, and the two items have no connection.
The mine/mace is made from a hard dark wood, reminds me of the now extinct dark African mahogany, and the studs are made from steel, with small steel pins to attach them, the chain is also steel, hence the rusty look.
The main body excluding studs is an inch and a half long (38mm).
So, any ideas? Has anyone else seen one?

[MrChef]

I passed this topic up a few times because I thought it said "Navel Lint"...

Anyway. 2 things. I remember reading or seeing videos about the medieval weapons such as flails and maces. According to what I've gleamed this style "ball and chain" as a weapon wasn't a thing for several reasons but became a modern creation/curiosity.

On the other hand in my professional experience in the kitchen we have various keys to open locks to storage areas. They are frequently lost or forgotten. We attach all forms of big cumbersome items to the key ring to avoid these issues. One place I worked had the key ring drilled into and attached to a masonry brick.

Cool paperweight.

[Herr Dr. Professor]

Take home an appropriate pastry, put a lead weight in it, dry it out, drill ad hole, and spray with RustOleum clear matte. Voila! A key keeper.