Q: My mother bought this piece of furniture in Portugal about 40 years ago. It has engraved and raised designs. It’s 29 inches high, 17 inches deep, and 24 inches wide. 
There is a mirror inside the top. Six large and eight smaller boxes with lids fit into the bottom. This label is in one of the boxes. What was this used for?
 
A: The mirror gives a clue to its use. This is a Victorian dressing box or toiletry box. Boxes like this, fitted with individual containers, 
were used as traveling cases by the wealthy in the 1800s. The French called them “necessaires de voyage” or just “necessaire.” 
They were fitted with individual boxes or bottles that held makeup and things a lady would need when traveling. They were also made to 
hold supplies for sewing or writing. The label, written in Portuguese, lists the maker as the “carpentry and furniture shop of Manoel Salustiano do Bomfin.” 
It lists the material as Jacaranda, a type of rosewood, and other woods. The company was located in Aveiro, Portugal, and made “a large and varied 
assortment of the most modern” furniture. Your fitted box can’t be a traveling box since it has legs. It may be a “marriage,” the box and a stand, parts that didn’t 
originally go together. Value about $2,000 or more.