Antique Victorian Era Tortoise Shell & Pique Cigar Etui or Travel Tea Caddy - Tortoiseshell

$595.00 $505.75

Frais de port calculés à la caisse.

Oversized antique Victorian era 5 1/8" tortoise shell & silvered pique cigar etui or travel tea caddy, wonderful condition with remnants of inner foil lining! We're always pleased to find and offer these wonderful antique shell items from the early to mid-1800s, whenever we're fortunate enough to find them. Tea caddies of this period, likely English as we believe this one to be, were foil lined as you see here in an attempt to keep the moist tea from warping the casket and also to work as a barrier to keep the moisture in the leaves. The same was true of the early cases for tobacco and rolled cigars, which this might well also be. There is controversy over the initial use of this size and/or type of case. It remains as you see it, superb for its fine shell, as well as for its historic significance and inherent beauty. Fine interest in a group of shell caddies, owing to size, or just enjoy it as a decorative table-top accent. Glorious old shell!

The case is in very good condition, no chips per se, but there is one 3/4" long repair at the hinge on back panel, as we've shown in photos. Solid, but impacts value a little, and price. The ivory rim of the case is fully intact, and much of the original old foil inside is also there. Tea caddies were foil lined, as you see here, and leads us to believe this might have been a travel caddy. A lovely old case!

IMPORTANT NOTE regarding antique tortoise shell or ivory: We are great supporters of protection for endangered species in our modern world. We never buy or sell anything 100 years or newer; we donate to anti-poaching organizations; we don't hunt; we conserve in ways that impact global warming (we're totally solar at home), knowing those measures also protect the animals in the wild today. We also recognize the vast cultural history we preserve with our care and reverence for these antique objects, and agree with CITES that objects over 100 years of age have nothing whatsoever to do with species depletion in our current world. We do hold a USDFW import/export license, as well.

Our offering exceeds the age limitation of "more than 100 years of age", and is well within the exemption for CITES regulation. If imported, met the CITES regulation. This item will be handled and shipped from our Utah business, and is not available for shipment internationally, nor within the USA to California, NY, Nevada, Hawaii, New Jersey, Oregon, Washington if it contains ivory, sorry. Please see our small print for more details.