I was first drawn to the polished wooden patina of the item on the auction table. It looked to be vintage with very little wear from age and use.
I wasn’t sure what it was, though, because the bivalved cover was closed, its top and bottom a matching pair. It was lying on a table among tools, so I wondered if it fell into that category. That was not a good presumption because auction houses usually group items according to the owner, not the type of item being sold.
Curious, I lifted one of the handles and still wasn’t sure what it was. I didn’t ponder it too long and moved on to other items. I was able to later give it a name. Can you figure out what it is? Click on the first photo for the answer.
