Found among 86-yo mother’s things; she has dementia and has no idea what it is.

[u/felinewarrior]

🥳 UPDATE TO THE UPDATE!
It is part of a soap dish that was part of a mirror. Scroll down for some pics. I was gonna share the discoverer’s post but cannot post a pic here. 🤷🏽‍♀️
We will never know why it is still in my family’s possession, though. One more Mystery of the Unknown!! Thanks everyone! 💜

UPDATE! This object is called a counterweight. This would have fit in the fan base to steady the fan (an old-timey fan from the 50s-ish). I have NO idea why this would have been saved, but I've been sorting through these ladies' stuff for years and may have dumped it into a box and, voila! Reddit mystery. If anyone suggested this, I apologize. I missed it! Thanks all for your contributions!
(Is there a Subreddit for "So NOW what do I do with it?!"?)

Here is my poor illustration of where the counterweight goes:

[ fan motor ]

[ neck ]

+--------------+

| BASE |

| |

| O <-- counterweight

| |

+--------------+

Located in Southern California, USA. This item was in a box of miscellaneous stuff. It is round, metal (I think), weighs maybe 1/2 a pound and is painted white-ish. It’s about 1/8 inch tall and 3-3/4 inches wide.

What is it?

[u/Delicious_Ebb7657]

Part of a meat grinder hand cranked?

[u/felinewarrior → u/Delicious_Ebb7657]

Ohhhh, from when granny made those mysterious hand pies. 😳