A stunning museum worthy travel vanity, c.1890, crest engraved, and by Albert Barker, Mfg., 5, New Bond Street, LONDON. An astounding array of vanity implements, missing just one scissors (of 3) and one brush, a glove stretcher. There is even a dual-covered snuff or tea caddy, vermeil interior with heavy old London sterling silver caps. Elaborately designed, it opens in layers like the old French sets, and is heavy as a rock. I'm sure it had a leather-strapped heavy canvas outer covering case for actual travel because the embossed leather is in very good condition for age. It has the embossment style of the fine Louis Vuitton Epi, if that helps you to see it. Exterior is black, interior a deep dark green that is almost black. I am unsure of the crest. Someone will surely know it and email us with more information we can add to our listing text. TIA, if it's you. A Large valise, the case is 14" long, nearly 10" wide and closes to a compact 4" in height. Weighs about 10 lbs.
Very good to excellent condition for age and type. As noted, 3 pieces are missing: glove stretcher would have been in that fitting in lid, above the hand mirror; a larger pair of scissors (one of a set of 3) no longer there in it's fitting; one elongated brush is missing (an open fitting directly opposite the one in which an ivory brush rests. Typically, a wooden brush would also be part of this set, so I'm not sure if the missing one would have been wood or ivory. I've had this one for decades, intrigued by these old travel necessaire to begin with and the more when they're quite unique as this one is. Note, there is a oral thermometer in its old wonderful case, also an original fitted piece. I have never seen one of these with a thermometer. The superb double-capped caddy right front (oval) would have been either for tobacco/snuff, or perhaps for tea. The silver on all is heavy, undamaged. The bottles and crystal jars are all intact, no chips nor cracks. The show horn does show an old break, an ancient restoration and is holding very strong but I'd probably not put it to use. The mirror is perfectly clear, thick beveled glass without any loss to the silvering. There is an inner thin ivory oval which holds it in, and there are a couple of shrinkage cracks to be seen, very little for a set this old. The ivory used must have been highest quality and well-aged before it was worked. The scent bottles (2) do not have stoppers, none originally, they have compression corks inside lid and they're supple and working perfectly. A tight closure. I would trust the set to travel, but imagine it atop your dressing table or vanity. Note also, 2 pocket knives, one a fruit knife with sterling silver blade. Vermeil (14-18k gold in heavy layer on the sterling silver, interiors of lids, particularly evident in the oval snuff box.
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.
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.
