19th Century Large Wax Seal Etui with Sixteen Double-Sided Seals

This 19th-century wax seal travel set was used to seal personal letters with hot wax. This set offered ready-to-use seals with several apt, often humorous, mottos that could be selected based on the letter’s content or recipient.

This etui is decorated with a portrait of Ovid on one side, and a plinth with an empty medaillon on the other. The two other sides are decorated with a quiver, bow, and arrows.

To my knowledge, this type of etui was produced in two sizes; this example is the larger size. 

Inside the etui are sixteen brass double-sided seals, with one double seal, giving 32 mottoes to use in total, mostly in French. These read: 

•  A dog: ‘Reconnaissance’  / A portractor: ‘Toujours Droit’. 

•  A deer that has been hit with an arrow: ‘Ma douleur cause ma fuite’ My pain causes my escape) / A quill: ‘Toujours Sincere’ (always sincere).

•  Cupid riding a dog: ‘Fidelity me conduit’ / Vendredi. 

•  A horse: ‘L’obstacle m’encourage‘ / ‘Plus demil que joie‘.

•  A knight on horseback: ‘Paix ou Guerre’ / ‘Samedi’.

•  A mouse and a lion, caught in a net: ‘Patience’ / A flower and sun: ‘Privee de toi Mourir’. 

•  A tiger: ‘Garde a Vous’ / A swamp with typha: ‘Telle est ma destinée’.

•  A man on an elephant: ‘La Raison Fait Ma Force’ / ‘Jeudi’. 

•  A mirror: ‘Je Dis la Vérité’ / A pocket watch: ‘Calme au Dehors, Agitée au Delans’.

•  An envelope: ‘Va où je Voudrais être’ / A butterfly and flowers: ‘La Douceur est Ma Vie‘.

•  An oak leaf: ‘Je ne change ou à la mort’ / A flower bouquet: ‘Pour Vous’. 

•  A knight’s helmet: ‘Sans Peur et Sans Reproche’ / ‘Mardi’.

•  A Pelican feeding her young with her own blood: ‘Tout Pour les Miens’ / ‘Dimanche’.

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A horse: ‘Fier mais sensible’ / A sunset: ‘Je reviendrai’.

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Stormy waters: ‘Telle est la vie’ / An ocean: ‘Calme au sein des obages’.

•   Two fighting roosters: ‘A Mort’ / The sun god Helios: ‘Je me regle jamais’. 

GENERAL INFORMATION 

Size: 76 x 22 x 21 mm. Each seal measures 13 x 11 mm. 

Weight: 37.30 grams

Age: 19th Century, circa 1830s. 

Material: Brass.

Condition: In good antique condition with only minor signs of wear, consistent with its age. The set is inclomplete, originally there would have been about 30 seals inside.

All seals are in good condition; some appear to have been barely used, while others show small signs of use. 

Please note that this shop is based in the EU. Although antiques are exempt from taxes in most countries, buyers from outside the EU might be subject to import taxes.