Tinder-box (length 2 1/8 ins); a sitting hare chased on lid

Tinder-box (length 2 1/8 ins); a sitting hare chased on lid. [One of 14 examples (nos. 700-713), all West European, of iron and rectangular in shape, with a lid hinged at one end and closing by a snap-catch at the other, and a steel extending the whole length of each side. They range in length from 1 5/8 in to 2 1/2 ins. Each was intended to hold flint and tinder, but most are now empty. The lids of nearly all and the bottoms of some are decoratively engraved, chased or inlaid, generally with representations of game-animals, sporting-scenes, and the like, showing they were used chiefly by sportsmen in the field for lighting their pipes, etc. Most are probably French or German, but some are English.]