“Appears to be cotton, wrapped partially in burlap, and secured with steel straps. Hickman, Kentucky is written on the burlap.”
Answer: "We had one of these when I was growing up. It was a souvenir from some southern plantation-type place we visited. Just a mini bail of cotton, ready to be shipped off."
#14 I had an old science teacher in middle school that made these out of condoms while killing time during tests. I hope they were new ones.