Would you go on a long trip without your smartphone? Not even in the Victorian era would a lady or gentleman leave their loved ones without a few lines of news or a few romantic words of love.
✍🏻 No automatic corrector, just elegant handwriting, inkwell, nib and sealing wax to freeze words in time which were then tied with satin ribbons, kept, read and reread.
For this need, these wooden or papier mâché caskets were created, simple or elaborate and inlaid with essences or mother of pearl.
Inside there was everything needed for writing, from the pen holder, nibs and sealing wax, to the ink bottles, the opening compartments for storing papers and envelopes and obviously the writing surface covered in leather, hide or velvet .
It is still possible to find wonderful specimens from France and England for a few hundred euros where you can keep the messages of the heart. 