Vintage Dark Wood Open Back ‘Merchant’s Money Box Tray’ Organizer

We believe this was designed to be inserted inside a larger wood box, sitting above the bottom of the box probably on ledges built into the larger box. The drawers would serve as storage for coins and the sunken hinged lid would open up to a space used to stash documents and larger sums of money. The larger box would have had a lock on the front, a section on the front of this tray showing evidence of room made for such a lock. For an example, see this auction item.
 
It was not a portable writing desk, as the lid that would have served as a writing space is neither flat nor stable, nor covered in the felt that most vintage writing desks had installed. It was not a stand alone unit meant to sit atop a desk as the back shows no sign of having a base installed, which would make the lid useless…
 
It may be from India but the fine construction and dovetail joints are more similar to Japanese design from times long ago. We do not know what kind of wood it is made of, but mahogany looks similar and would be appropriate to the time.
 
We would assume this was inherited from the Burr sisters who would have purchased it in the 1920s or 1930s on their world travels. It is beautiful, but there is a crack in the lid, the wood in the center of the lid has lost a strip or two resulting in it not fully covering the space, and there are two small chips on the rim. See photos. The lid is also a bit difficult to open. Perhaps wood oil would help. Otherwise, it is in very good condition for such a vintage piece.
 
H 2 1/8” x L 18 3/8” x D 12 1/2”
 
Disclaimer: We have tried to make sure colors shown in photos are representative of the real colors of each item. We have tried to identify all imperfections in descriptions, but we may have missed some. If you are unhappy with your purchase, let us know.