Vesta cases

In 1832 William Newton named his newly patented matches after Vesta, the Roman goddess of fire and the hearth. Small containers to house these friction matches were introduced shortly afterwards (in the early 1830s), to prevent accidental combustion.

As their production became more sophisticated, they reflected the status and taste of their owner. Part of the essential 'dress code' of the late Victorian and Edwardian eras, they were made in a range of materials from the purely functional to the deluxe.  The wealthy would carry a box fashioned in silver, enamel or gold.

The vesta box were at their most popular during the decades either side of 1900.  Almost every Edwardian carried matches, to light a 'smoke' as well as stoves and lamps.  In America, Europe and Japan they were produced extensively from the 1880s (when the fashion for cigarette smoking began) to the 1920s when petrol lighter and tearable 'matchbooks' took their place.

Adapted from the Georgian snuffbox, the typical vesta case was a shaped rectangle with a flip-top lid, a serrated edge or a ribbed 'strike' on its base, and a link to attach a watch chain. The vast majority of these are plain or simply engraved/chased with initials or motifs. These become more desirable when set with semi-precious or precious stones or decorated with enamel sporting scenes, advertising logos, club crests etc.

There are also 'combination' vestas that incorporate additional features (such as cigar cutters, a small knife blade or apertures for sovereigns or stamps) and the larger standing or 'table' vestas made for use at home by the hearth or in the smoking room.

Highlights in the sale include a Victorian silver combined cigarette, slow match and vesta case by HW & L Dee for retail by T Jones, London 1877, estimate: £150-£250.  A Victorian silver and signal flag enamelled vesta case, Johnson, Sons & Edmonds, London 1888 is estimated at £300 - £400, and an attractive early Victorian silver vesta case by John Harris, 1853 is estimated at £120 - £180.