Card case

The nobility and bourgeoisie of the 19th century periodically organised various kinds of social events that allowed them to open the doors of their mansions. Among the accessories that a lady had to carry in her bag or hanging on a chain were dance cards and card cases whose variety of materials and decorative motifs determined their owner’s marital status. While mother of pearl was used by single women, ivory was used by married women and jet by widows. / In this card case, both the material of the card case and its decoration shows that its bearer was a single woman, as it is made of mother of pearl and decorated with a bucolic scene in which a couple takes a dove out of a cage, symbolising the virginity that is lost with marriage.