Marked Sterling Silver Business Card Case - 2.020 ozt. "Sterling" stamped on the back. No visible maker's marks. 

Size: 2 1/4 x 3 3/4 in. 

Weight: 2.020 ozt. 

The business or calling card case has been around for over 300 years. Calling cards first appeared in the 18th Century as a convenient and compact way for the aristocracy to announce themselves and leave a declaration of merit or intent when visiting others. The practice of leaving calling cards became more than just a fad by the turn of the century, becoming a requirement of participating in genteel society. An etiquette around calling cards developed that was essentially dependent upon the bearer being received by a servant, which confined the practice to the affluent social classes. However, the explosion of the merchant class (and, later, middle class) led to the practice proliferating among them, and as was often the case throughout history, once lower classes began adopting something, the upper classes soon abandoned it. The practicality of promoting oneself with the calling card led to its renaming as the “business” card, and was pivotal in both European and American economic growth throughout the late 1800s. As businessmen often needed to go many places and visit multiple potential buyers on their travels, the need for card cases to hold many copies of the card appeared. Some of the earliest surviving examples date from the 1830s onwards, made from a variety of materials including gold, silver, agate, tortoiseshell, mother-of-pearl, ivory, and even lacquered papier-mache and leather, as well as a wide range of decorative woods. Some were works-of-art in their own right, particularly during the Victorian era, during which metal and sterling silver became the dominant mediums. Variations in construction include hinged or push-fit tops, side or top opening, with some even designed to fan out when opened. Some gentlemen’s cases were curved, designed to sit more comfortably in a waistcoat pocket, while women’s cases tended to be larger. The variety of constructions and designs make them very popular with modern collectors.