This particularly rare calling-card receiver would have been made around the turn of the century when calling cards were one of the early forms of social media! Before telephones, the calling card (or carte de visite in French) had a significant role as a social tool. In the days when ladies might receive visitors during hours they were known to be “at home,” the calling card announced visitors at the house.

Mark on Bottom says ‘Meriden B. Company 1768’. Silver plating over ‘white metal’. (No star under the scales.) It was made in Meriden, Connecticut.