Looks like a tuner that clips on the headstock. D'Addario makes several varieties and I'm sure other brands do too.
https://www.daddario.com/products/ac...ndolin-tuners/
Eastman MD315 Mandolin
Photo quality isn't great but my first thoughts when seeing it was that it was just part of the headstock carving - Joe Foley incorporates something like that on the headstocks of his instruments and I'm fairly sure I've seen photos of another more recent builder who does the same thing on some, not all, of the instruments he makes. Check out the headstock on this Joe Foley bouzouki that was for sale on Reverb:
https://reverb.com/item/34259021-joe...irish-bouzouki
2018 Girouard Concert oval A
2015 JP "Whitechapel" tenor banjo
2018 Frank Tate tenor guitar
1969 Martin 00-18
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Thanks and I thought of this too but I think not. I've seen many videos on Youtube with professional players with this at the end of the headstock - they are all more or less the same shape with some kind of motif I think on the front. I think Jill's answer is probably the right one.
Maybe Joe Foley should offer a built in tuner option. Come to think of it that finial doodad limits the location of a clip-on tuner somewhat.
Jim
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