Featured Little brass & faux tortoiseshell box?

Found this little box today at a local secondhand shop. Google search has one match described as Victorian, many other french examples with genuine tortoiseshell however. What do you guys think? Will be able to take more pics once home

 

PS: it’s tiny, around 3cm tall

 

Charming! I think it is genuine Turttle shell

 

really? The veneer is super thin and there are no tiny dots at the edges of the dark spots, unlike my other tortoiseshell boxes but I can’t think of any other imitation materials

 

is this crazying ?
I've never seen on shell

 

why not wait and post with more photos when you get home ?

 

cuz no one’s asking for more! And I don’t think it’s real tortoiseshell. I have six georgian tortoiseshell boxes and none of them looks like this

 

That is such a sweet box.

I want to ask for more, may I?
I would like to see the inside, please. Also the inside of the lid....

 

Me too, that looks real.

 

Here you are! And a pic together with one of my genuine boxes

 

A comparison under loupe

 

sorry "crazing" where the hell are my google team ?

a hot needle in a corner should fix any doubts and should smell of burnt hair !

 

I still don't think it would need an extra hot needle test to confirm! But I did, something popped up immediately, completely different from the black dot on genuine tortoiseshell. Don't know what it is, but just not tortoiseshell!

 

"black dot" as you call it , on real tortoishell is the same as with hair when burnt( shrivels and blackens )
... both smell of burnt hair


I suggest resin ? what was the smell ? plastic ?

 

Please don't ever use the hot needle again, it damages a piece.
And if an item is celluloid, you could even set it on fire. Celluloid burns fast and furious, I've seen it with my own eyes.

 

Just want to satisfy people's curiocity! In most cases I can tell if it's real or not by just looking at it

 

I'm not good at describing smell though not sure what was used at 19th century

 

You are allowed to trust your own instincts. Besides, you have experience with tortoiseshell, and have a good insight into materials. When you say it isn't tortoiseshell, I'm fine with that.

19th century faux tortoiseshell was usually horn, and later on celluloid. Celluloid was invented in the 1880s.

 

Might suggest this sweet little box could date into the 20th century, and would also add Galalith to possible materials...

~Cheryl

 

Or Catalin but those plastics are highly unlikely. They'd have to start with a thin sheet. grind it down and then polish...and pray it didn't snap halfway through the process. Far easier to use the real thing.