Antique Art Nouveau Carnet de Bal secret when smoking was a common

when smoking was a common pastime and social ritual

and this one has that storybook grandeur that turns a wall into a wunderkammer moment

where the old-world pressures of church and state behaviour waned and the floodgates to libertine perversity opened

Perfect perched on a bar cart

this box is a perfect example of mid-century fishing gear —practical

Antique Art Nouveau Carnet de Bal secret when smoking was a commonA charming antique metal dance card or aide mmoire, beautifully decorated with raised Art Nouveau floral motifs. The front features elegant trailing leaves and blossoms in relief, with additional foliate detailing along the hinged top. It opens like a tiny booklet with a functioning pencil and is suspended from an olive green cord, making it wearable as a pendant or decorative collectors piece. Likely dating from the late 19th to early 20th century,