Small leather wallet type thing sterling name plate

What is it?
3 5/8" x 1 3/4"
Opens similar to a wallet. I thought maybe it held business cards?, but I just can't find anything similar.

 

It may have been used for spectacles. Something fairly dainty might fit.

 

Or calling cards, rather than business cards.

 

With the opening in the side, visiting cards do seem quite likely.

 

You all are great, thanks so much for the help Af and Messi. I'll see if I can find something similar.

 

Is that a C Babe on the plate? My Great Uncle was named Clarence Smith and nick named Babe...

 

How neat Shiloh!
Yes, it is Babe with a letter before, and after. I'm not sure what the letters are?? I thought maybe a "C", for the first one, but not sure. The second letter is very similar to the first, but slightly different. What do you think?

 

It says C Babe C, maybe it was spectacles, see, babe, see.

 

You might want to see what you can make out of the mark before "sterling." My best guess would be the smaller of the 2 marks shown in the link for Campbell-Metcalf.

http://www.sterlingflatwarefashions.com/IconInit/IconCrown.html

 

Thanks for showing an up close image. Of course he died several years ago and was not in that era of fashion. I just thought it kind of coincidental.

 

Thank you so much Af, bakersgma & shiloh. I'm sorry I haven't responded sooner, it's been a crazy few days around here.
Af, I'm really not sure that even the smallest, or flattest spectacles would fit in here? It is very thin leather, and it seems anything, other than something flat, would not fit correctly?? IDK? I do love the "see babe see" thing though....
I was just able to do a light polishing, and here it is again. This time with a standard business card, which will not fit. But maybe calling cards were smaller.
Bakers, thank you so much for that ID. I do believe you are correct! That is great to know, I had given up on trying to figure that part out. It also narrows down the date to 1892-1900.How you ever figured that out is beyond me!! Thanks!!

 

Most of the ones I have had over the years, have indeed been smaller than todays business card.

 

Thanks Messi!

 

I am trying to find one in all my "stuff", but no luck so far.
Too much "stuff". LOL

 

You're most welcome, tyeldom! It was a case of zooming in your first closeup of the mark and then looking through various references to find a close enough match. Fortunately the sterlingflatware fashions site had the small version of their mark which others did not.

 

Try a piece of card-stock cut to 3" x 1½" - that was a pretty common size for gentlemen's visiting cards in that era, ladies' cards were usually a bit larger and more squarish.

~Cheryl

 

http://www.artofmanliness.com/2008/09/07/the-gentlemans-guide-to-the-calling-card/

"

• A married man had a medium sized card, while an unmarried man had a smaller card. Men’s cards were always smaller than women’s."

I learned something new,tnx Cheryl

 

Here is a link to an earlier discussion on this forum re a calling card which I have from the mid-1800s. The size of that calling card is exactly 3" wide and 1-1/2" high.

https://www.antiquers.com/threads/a...ish-diplomat-washington-dc-1865.129/#post-451

 

Thank you so much bakersgma, Cheryl, Messi, Shiloh and yourturntoloveit
I cut the card to those dimensions and it's a perfect fit!! Thank you! I wish I could go back in time and see who "Babe" was.....must have been a real distinguished gentleman.
Shiloh that site you posted is so interesting! I really enjoyed reading it, and learned a lot also.