19th century rosewood courtesy box

19th century box, rosewood marquetry lemon tree and maple. Decoration of nets, scrolls flowers, shells and scrolls, a set of initials in Gothic lettering is engraved in a small ivory medallion in the heart of the medallion central. Commonly called courtesy boxes, they were in vogue in the 18th and 19th centuries and were used to store mail, instruments of writing, feathers, seals and sticks of wax, or more simply jewelry, and many others little secrets . They often accompanied their owner during their travels. This one has a clever layout to double bottom, with in the lower part, shutters that slide laterally.