Beautiful 19th century pair of binoculars, vest-sized for opera, opera glasses. They're French and Napoleon III (Victorian), c.1850-70s. Likely first marketed from the Palais Royal with its storied history as the palace of Cardinale Richelieu, and the later history as cultural gathering place with boutiques offering the finest goods in the world to a patronage of wealthy and titled elite of society. Full measurements noted on the photos.
Very good to excellent condition for age and type. This pair is well-preserved for time, only a single hairline from age/shrinkage of the natural material and you see that on one eyepiece. The barrels, also ivory, have a single tight line. Flaws marked on photos for your review. Lenses are clear, undamaged, no surface abrasions, though they would benefit from the set being opened to clean the interior lenses.
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.
