Beautifully crafted collectables and an essential accessory for any Victorian society gent or lady, our 21st August auction features a number of card cases. 

The upper-class ritual of leaving social calling cards was widespread in the Regency and Victorian eras, and the cases in which these social-climbing socialites carried their printed introductions were designed to be equally status enhancing. Expensive and often handmade, they feature a level of quality and ornate decoration that was all about making the best first impression.

A selection of the Victorian card cases to feature in our Saturday 21st August auction

The card cases in this weeks Saturday auction are a great representation of the type of designs favoured and are manufactured from a range of materials from abalone mother-of-pearl to ivory and tortoiseshell - completely unacceptable to modern sensibilities but indicative entirely of another, often thankfully, distant age.

Ethics of a now inconceivably less environmentally-conscious world aside, the cases’ craftsmanship and carving are astonishing. The level of detail and precision is remarkable, and they remain a compelling collectable as well as what looks to be an appreciating investment.

See lots 955 - 972 in our Antique & Vintage Collectables auction the Saturday 21st August