Lot 1: A Princess Mary Christmas Gift Box, 1914

A Princess Mary Christmas Gift Box, 1914. This rectangular, lidded metal box, likely brass or a brass-plated alloy, exhibits a patinated and somewhat tarnished surface. The lid is extensively embossed with a central design featuring “1914” within a laurel wreath, and “CHRISTMAS 1914” in a decorative cartouche below. Around the border, the names of nations are inscribed: “BELGIUM”, “RUSSIA”, “SERBIA”, and “FRANCE”. The visible English text provides clear dating to the Christmas of 1914, strongly associating it with the early period of World War I.