Victorian Country House Correspondence Letter Box

A wonderful antique mahogany country house correspondence letters box with “Answerd” and “Unanswerd” slots for letters dating from circa 1850. The lid with two slots each labelled with brass plaques engraved with ‘Answerd’ & ‘Unanswerd’, the interior divided and with original brass lock (no key) and mother of pearl escutcheon. Following Sir Rowland Hill’s reforms of the Post Office in 1840, the cheap and reliable post service lead to an exponential rise in letter writing. It became customary to have a letters box such as this kept in the hallway of a country house, emptied at set intervals by a servant who would then take the letters to the nearest post office for onward delivery. Good condition with wear and marks commensurate with age.