Here on offer is a rare antique French Palais Royal, large egg shaped, mother of pearl sewing etui, circa 1840. Often they produced sewing tools and the etuis to hold them. This gorgeous etui has a large egg shaped case carved in iridescent mother of pearl with gilt metal fittings. The exterior is in good condition, it has some minor wear to the gilt and there is a minor crack in the mother of pearl, on the lower section, just under the opening plate, which is stable and secure. The etui opens by pushing on the thumb plates. It has a pad with cream silk velvet on the upper surface and silk on the lower, it was designed to lift out to provide a small storage space below. The pad has looped fittings, they hold scissors, a bodkin, thimble, needle case and a small scent bottle, one is empty and would have held a large eyed needle for threading ribbon or cord through clothes, shoes etc. The interior is in good order. I believe the tools are all gold plated on a metal base with delightful classical designs in shallow relief, but I cant see any makers marks? The bottle retains the original glass stopper (which I havent removed) beneath the hinged lid, the glass body is without damage. The hinge on the bottle has split and still works but can be repaired if required. The scissors are missing the tip on one blade. The needle case is stunning, but has a small spilt to the seam on the side. Please see my pictures. The bodkin has a beautiful faceted body fitted to the cut steel handle. This very rare etui is being offered in great used antique condition. The etui measures 5.6 (14.2cm) long by 3.25 (8.5cm) high. A rare find and a wonderful collectable needlework piece. Please see my pictures for the details of the condition, which complement this description. Many thanks for taking the time to look. The item “ANTIQUE FRENCH PALAIS ROYAL EGG SHAPED MOTHER OF PEARL SEWING ETUI c1840″ is in sale since Sunday, July 23, 2017. This item is in the category “Collectables\Sewing, Fabric & Textiles\Tools, Scissors & Measures”. The seller is “safinob” and is located in Reading. This item can be shipped worldwide.
- Type: Etui
- Colour: Mother of Pearl
- Sub-Type: Egg shaped case
- Country/Region of Manufacture: France
