A red wax seal and engraved trade label mounted in a turned lignum vitae screwtop box. England: mid-nineteenth century. Diameter 1 1/2 inches (3.75 cm); the seal bears a unicorn crest surrounded by the motto "ora et labora" on a scroll, surmounted by a peer's coronet, possibly from the Ramsay Family, Earls of Dalhousie; the engraved orange paper label has the British Royal crest and text stating, "Halfhide & Sons / Seal Engravers / To Her Majesty / Coventry Street / London." A few faint scuffs to the box, the seal with a small chip and a hairline crack.

A fair number of these small screw-top seal boxes from various London seal makers are still extant, but this is a particularly well-preserved example. They were given to the purchaser of a new seal and would have served both as a sample impression and as a trade card for the engraver.

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