I think it's a match holder but I'm not sure

It may have been part of a set and the scratchy part was on another item, like the ashtray. I still think it's for wooden matches. Too small for calling cards and just not the right configuration for stamps. I have an incense burner that is cold painted - a man sitting on a Persian carpet smoking a long stemmed pipe. On the other end of the carpet is a small circle that my mother used as an incense burner for cones. My uncle brought it back from Morocco after WWII.

 

Similar to the present-day business card, calling cards were printed on heavy card stock and were generally under two inches by four inches. A common size was one and one-half by three inches................

Would that fit ???

 

If it's 2" tall, the holding part looks to be about 1 1/2" wide....width would be fine for a small gentleman's card, and length of gentleman's card would be about 2 1/2" at least.....which wouldn't be a problem fitting!!!

 

After everyone's input (which is immensely appreciated) I am still stumped. The cutout in the front of the storage compartment seems to make it impractical for keeping matches neatly in place as most vertical match holders are deep so the matches will remain upright. As far as a holder for a gentleman's card (waiting card) It wouldn't be something that someone would carry their cards in on their person and it doesnt seem to be the type of thing someone would have visitors leave their card in at their home. And as far as stamps, they all seem to be in some kind of covered holder (I assume to keep them from blowing around and possibly getting lost) Was it standard practice to keep one's own cards on their desk in their home? And at only 1.75 inches wide were business cards that small? After researching some history on gentleman's cards the smallest standard size I could find was in the US and UK at 2 inches.

 

Was made to hold a small box of small wooden matches, with long axis vertical. The fez-topped figure may be smoking a cigar. That type of matchbox has a striker on the side.

 

If it's not for cards or stamps, then the only other thing I can think of is matches. Or possibly something which people could up as they walked past - tickets or coupons or something.

 

Ah. Matchbook.