How Old Is This Cowry Shell Snuff Box With Asian Carving?

Hi and how are you all?

Sorry I am having trouble uploading pictures. It kept saying file size too large. I tried to resize them all, but it still kept saying file size too large. I uploaded all the pictures to Pinterest instead:

https://www.pinterest.com/dee7192/antique-cowry-shell-snuff-box/


I just purchased this and the seller told me she has no clue what it is and thought it was a vintage trinket box. I figured it may be a Georgian era cowry shell snuff box. It looks very old and appears to be mounted in gilt brass metal or bronze. It has a little brass(?) thumb rest and fancy scalloped clasp. There is patina on it and some verdigris in the hinges and darkening to the metal mounts. The bottom has darkening and toning in the carving from what appears to be age.

The hinges look very old. On the bottom is an Asian (Chinese or Japanese) carved scene. The carving appears to have been done in abalone shell or mother of pearl. It is hard to see the carving and you have to look under the light at certain angles to see it through the iridescence of the shell. the carving looks like Chinese people doing normal everyday things.

When I opened it up, I see there is something written inside and I see what appears to be a weird looking letter E or an Asian symbol. It appears that it may have been someone's name was written with a year possibly. It is too faded to see.

https://www.pinterest.com/dee7192/antique-cowry-shell-snuff-box/

I would love to know more about it. Chinese? Japanese? Age? Rarity? If it is Chinese or Japanese, what dynasty is it from? Anything else you might know about it?

Thanks in advance for your replies and help. I appreciate it.

 

I was able to figure out how to put pictures in my post. Sorry it is so many pictures. I figured the more detail the better. More photos to follow....

 

More photos...
There are no metal hallmarks so I do not know if it is tarnished silver or just gilt bronze or brass.

 

I'll go with snuff too..

 

Hi Komokwa. Thanks so much for your reply. I figured it was a snuff box. I wonder if the bottom carving is Chinese or Japanese and wonder how old it is?

 

Couldn’t find one with a similar engraving as yet to help date it.That one figure looks like a chinese peasant to me.

 

The scratched scene looks more modern than antique. The clothes on the figures are the part that looks that way to me.

 

I think it's just silver colored metal. Not silver or bronze.

 

I think Chinese...
circa 1900...
and the bottom looks like a slice of abalone shell.

imo.. 19th century chinese cowrie shell snuff box

 

black lip mop

 

ya....it could be mop......but it sure is showing a lot of color...

 

A term that is new to me... Looked it up, and see how beautiful it is. Thanks for suggesting that.

 

I looked that up. Thank you. I thought it was abalone, but black lip mop looks similar too.

 

The reason I though abalone is because I have a bunch of antique abalone opera glasses in my collection which are iridescent with rainbow-like colors.
HollyBlue mentioned black lip MOP and it is surprisingly similar. She might be definitely right.

It could be older than circa 1900. I did some more research and I found some other carved mop and abalone snuff boxes that were marked "China Trade" "Cantonese" and were dated from 1789-1850. Most of the cowry (cowrie) shell snuff boxes almost identical to mine minus the bottom carving were all dated between 1780's-1850.

Here are some other carvings I found in MOP or shell dated older than 1900. Some are Chinese:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/284634499144?hash=item424589c848:g:K2wAAOSw6Ohh-T1v

https://vintage-antique-jewelry.com...arved-mother-of-pearl-tortoiseshell-4750.html

https://www.sellingantiques.co.uk/7...er-of-pearl-snuff-box-mop-cantonese-antique/#

https://mfordcreech.com/George_II_Silver_&_Carved_Mother_of_Pearl_Snuff_Box_c1740.html

https://www.chairish.com/product/30...namel-shell-form-snuff-box-qianlong-period-vr

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/c-1800-C...=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

https://www.ebay.com/itm/361405508138

 

That is cool she mentioned this because I never heard of black lip MOP before. I looked it up and it is so pretty.

 

What really fascinates me is that the area of the elaborate little carving is so teeny tiny. It must have been incredibly hard to carve a whole scene in an area that is only about 2 1/2 inches by about 2 inches big. It blows my mind.

They don't make things like this anymore, lol.