Bidspirit auction | Victorian Inlaid Burl Wood Portable

Victorian Inlaid Burl Wood Portable Writing Slope - A 19th-century portable writing slope constructed with highly figured burl wood veneer and ebonized trim. The exterior features complex mixed-media inlay including abalone, mother-of-pearl, and bone, arranged in geometric borders and a central scrolling vine motif. A central mother-of-pearl cartouche is engraved with an intertwined script monogram, with the characters A, H, and B visible. The box is fitted with a brass lock escutcheon on the exterior and another on the interior lid. The interior contains a slanted, two-part writing surface lined with blue velvet and decorated with a gold-tooled foliate border. The interior framework is ebonized, with a secondary lid in a dark, straight-grained wood. Compartments for pens and inkwells are located behind the writing surface, which also lifts to reveal two storage wells. Four white felt pads are attached to the ebonized base. 15 x 12 x 5.5 inches.