This case comprises panels of elephants' teeth mounted between a chased silver frame. The frame depicts various people and animals, going about daily life.
The case was made in China around the middle of the 19th century and is from the collection of Wladimir Herman.
Such cases are very rare; an elephant's tooth case set in a plain silver frame and made by Nathaniel Mills (1842) sold at Phillips in 1998 for £550 (including premium).
The featured case was a lucky find by a diligent collector as it was mis-