Porcelain & Silver Plate Vanity Sets Catalog Page (1907)

Images shown in an advertisement from a 1907 Fort Dearborn Watch & Clock Co. Catalog, Chicago, Il.

Antique Ebony and Sterling Vanity Sets

In the late Victorian era through the early 20th century, ebony vanity sets were regarded as the height of refinement, prized by both men and women for their durability, sleek appearance, and association with elegance. Ebony is a dense, fine-grained hardwood known for its rich, lustrous black color, often with subtle streaks of dark brown. It has long been admired for its smooth finish, natural weight, and ability to polish to a mirror-like sheen. Historically, ebony was sourced from tropical regions, most notably from India, Ceylon (modern-day Sri Lanka), Madagascar, and West Africa. Each region produced slightly different varieties, but all were valued for their hardness and deep coloration. Ebony was rare and costly, making it a luxury material reserved for fine furnishings, musical instruments, and, in this case, the personal grooming implements of the fashionable classes.

The vanity sets of this period often combined imported ebony with sterling silver mountings, the latter crafted in the United States. The silver fittings were typically monogrammed, allowing them to serve as both functional and personalized objects. These embellishments added an additional layer of refinement and status, aligning with the Victorian and Edwardian taste for items that reflected individuality and genteel living. Ebony’s natural darkness provided a striking contrast to the gleam of polished silver, a pairing that made even utilitarian objects feel like luxury possessions.

The range of objects produced was extensive, reflecting both practical needs and social rituals surrounding grooming. Hand mirrors, hair brushes, and combs formed the foundation of many sets, while more specialized tools such as military brushes, nail buffers, cuticle knives, curling irons, and bonnet brushes extended their use to highly specific functions. Ebony-mounted powder jars, hatpin holders, salve jars, and sewing implements further illustrate how these sets were intended not only for personal care but also for order and beauty in one’s dressing table or travel kit. Men’s versions were equally popular, including toothbrushes, sock darners, and curved hat brushes.

  

During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, ebony became one of the most fashionable materials used in the creation of vanity and dressing table accessories. Its deep, velvety black color gave everyday grooming items an unmistakable elegance, and it paired beautifully with decorative metalwork such as sterling silver or gilded mounts. A remarkable variety of objects were produced with ebony components. Dressing tables might feature ebony-backed hand mirrors, hair brushes, military brushes, clothes brushes, bonnet brushes, and curved hat brushes, as well as toothbrush handles and manicure tools. In addition, there were dresser trays, comb trays, and pin trays, along with powder shakers, perfume bottles, perfume atomizers, hatpin holders, ring holders or “trees,” and combs. Small containers were also common—hair receivers, powder jars, rouge jars, salve boxes, and hairpin boxes—all fitted with ebony lids or bases. Even more practical items such as glove stretchers, curling irons, buttonhooks, shoe horns, sewing implements, and manicure sets were often mounted with ebony handles or decorative panels. Entire travel sets were sometimes assembled in fitted cases, containing miniature grooming tools and containers crafted with ebony accents. The material’s dark, polished surface gave these pieces a refined, almost jewel-like quality, making them both practical and highly decorative.

The prestige of ebony is reflected in an observation from Fabrics, Fancy Goods and Notions (Volume 46, 1912), which described the wood as “to all other woods what gold is to the metals.” Among the many types of wood used for toilet mirrors and grooming accessories, ebony was considered the most luxurious and desirable. The finest variety was Gaboon ebony, harvested in equatorial Africa. This wood is renowned for its intense black coloration, often subtly streaked with fine gray lines. It is extremely dense and brittle, which made working with it difficult and often wasteful during manufacturing. Historical accounts describe how logs were cut into manageable lengths and transported long distances to coastal ports before being shipped overseas for export. In raw form, the wood could appear rough and unremarkable, but once cut, polished, and shaped, it revealed the deep, glossy surface that made it so prized for decorative objects.

Another well-regarded variety was Macassar ebony, sometimes called Turtle Ebony, which originates primarily from regions of Southeast Asia and was also associated with the forests of Central and South America. Unlike the pure black of Gaboon ebony, Macassar ebony is known for its dramatic streaks of brown, amber, and golden tones, creating striking natural patterns in the wood. These beautiful stripes made it especially attractive for certain decorative applications. Additional grades of ebony were sourced from places such as Jamaica, Madagascar, the Isle of Pines, and the Philippine Islands, each producing wood with slightly different coloration and grain characteristics.

Much of the ebony used in vanity items was imported into Europe—particularly France—before being incorporated into finished goods. In many cases, the wooden components were later mounted with sterling silver fittings in the United States, where silversmiths added decorative appliqués and frames. These small silver ornaments—often floral, classical, or Art Nouveau in design—were typically stamped clearly with the word “Sterling.” Collectors may also encounter pieces marked “Ebony,” “Real Ebony,” “Genuine Ebony,” “Made in England,” or “Made in France.” However, not every piece in a vanity set was always marked. Frequently, only the larger items, such as mirrors or brushes, carried marks while smaller accessories remained unmarked.

Over time, manufacturers also experimented with alternative materials that could imitate ebony’s appearance at lower cost. Some later pieces used black-tinted celluloid or Bakelite, early plastics that could replicate the deep color of ebony while being easier to mold and less expensive to produce. Even earlier examples sometimes employed “bois durci,” a material made from compressed wood flour and resin that could be molded into decorative forms and finished in a dark color resembling ebony. Evidence of these materials appears in early twentieth-century trade references; for example, a 1907 notice in The Canada Gazette mentions “wooden and bois durci articles: brushes—mounted in silver, in boxes.”

Despite the presence of these substitutes, genuine ebony pieces remain particularly admired for their natural beauty and craftsmanship. The combination of richly polished black wood and gleaming silver mounts gives these vanity items a striking contrast that has captivated collectors for generations. Whether in the form of a mirror, brush, perfume bottle, or sewing tool, ebony accessories reflect a time when even the most practical household objects were designed with elegance and enduring style.

Bois Durci was an early plastic molding material based on cellulose. It was patented in Paris and  England in 1855, by Francois Charles Lepage. Lepage claimed in his patent that he had invented "A new composition of materials which may be employed as a substitute for wood, leather, bone, metal and other hard or plastic substances."

Bois Durci was made from finely ground wood 'flour' and mixed with a natural animal derived binder, either egg or blood albumen or gelatine, animal waste products leftover from the Parisian slaughterhouses. Wood from ebony or rosewood was ground to a very fine powder, with a flour-like consistency. Once mixed with a binder and some black dye, the mixture is dried, powdered again and placed in a steel mold where it was compressed in a powerful hydraulic press whilst being heated by steam. The final product has a highly polished finish imparted by the surface of the steel mold, and the natural wood powder, provided a black or brown result. 

Lepage's patent referred to small household items, such as combs, pipe stems, etc. The Societe du Bois Durci was established to produce desk items, especially decorative inkwell stands and plaques. The factory was at Grenelle in Paris and products were sold through A. Latry & Cie. of 7 Rue du Grand-Chantier, (Au Marais) in Paris. By the end of the 20th century, the firm had been taken over by MIOM (La Manufacture d’Isolants et Objets Moulés) which was founded in 1898. They continued to make Bois Durci until about 1920, by which time it had been superseded by newer plastics materials, such as bakelite.

It is not known when the production of "Bois Durci" objects, in Paris, was discontinued. However, it is known that another factory was established in 1883 in Sezanne by members of the Hunebelle family. This factory used the same material to produce very similar items. Although stylistically similar, it is almost certain that none of the molds from Paris were used in Sezanne. The Sezanne factory continued in production, manufacturing items in both the Belle Epoque and Art Nouveau style until the factory was destroyed by fire in 1926.

Also in Sezanne,  at the Department of Marne, in 1899, Mr. A. Arnoult said that he controlled the manufacture in France of "bois durci," or wood pulp hardened by chemical manipulation and that he knew of no other house engaged in the fabrication. Arnoult claimed that the manufacture of bois durci was "not important" on the "account of the great expense of the outfit," "the difficulty of having the wood, entirely uniform in hardness, grain and age at time of use, which is necessary to produce proper results," and the "difficulty of procuring suitable workmen." He mentioned that the "nearest approach to the bois durci is the caoutchouc durci," and names are given of two house in France engaged in this manufacture. The product is probably the same as the vulcanized rubber of the United States."

Advertisements, such as those found in the 1907 Fort Dearborn Watch & Clock Co. Catalog of Chicago, showcase the appeal and breadth of these ebony and silver-mounted sets. These images highlight how the vanity set was both a practical collection of grooming tools and a display of refinement, an outward reflection of the user’s taste and social position. Ebony, with its exotic origins and timeless beauty, lent an air of luxury and permanence that elevated even the simplest of daily rituals.