Silver corespondence Box? China? Tibet?

[emilgaigns]

Hi. I have an interesting silver box with a mark that I don’t recognise. If amybody can help, will be much appreciated. Thanks.

[zhaosu]

The item are called 'farmandan', mostly made in India. It's a presentation silver item used as a container for Letter of Thanks or similar things. Between 2nd half of the 19th century and 1st half of the 20the century, they were also popular in English communities in India and Straits Settlements.

I saw a few dozens of silver items in the same styles and crafts in recently several years, including mugs, boxes, bags, bowls, and some Southeast or South Asia utensils. Most of them were made with middle to low grade silver, and bear a Chinese mark such as '福' or '大福' or an illegal character like yours. IHMO, they are either made in Vietnam, or made by Vietnamese refugees in Thailand, Malaysia or Indonesia after 1976.

[Aguest]

I see them referred to as "Scroll Holders" and this one had a very well-written scroll inside which thanked a worker at the Standard Oil and Vacuum Company for his years of dedicated service to the company, and wishes him well as he retires from the company ::: This one tested for Sterling Silver very strongly, and the professional silver tester thought it was 950 silver in his opinion, but it was at least Sterling Silver ::: This one must have been made in India, specifically ordered by the Standard Oil and Vacuum Company (an extremely wealthy company at the time), so it would make sense that they would pay for a high-quality, heavy scroll holder with a high silver purity :::