These 19th century parquetry sets are hard to find, and I think very beautiful, so I always jump on them when I come across them. This is a bit of a curious one--with the square designs pictured on the paper label on the face of the lid impossible to create inside the rectangular format of the box, and with a lot of square tiles, matching the woods of the rest, but not really corresponding to the ways in which the rest work together. Perhaps a merger of of a couple of different sets at some point long ago, I'm not sure. But with (just about) two layers worth, lots of possibilities for puzzling out ways to arrange them within rectangular box, and all the more just laying them all out on the table and creating free form designs. Based on others similar I have had, I believe these were made in Germany, c. 1870s or so.
Box 9 3/4" x 8 1/2" x 1 1/8". There is an old, glue repaired split in the slide lid--well done and holding together, the lid fits tightly and pulls out fairly easily with a little pressure. Inside the box, mysteriously written along one interior edge in ink, is the word "Vanity."
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