Silver grooming set with a scent box or vinaigrette which has a sliding lid. The scent box used to have a padding of absorbent material inside on which perfume could be sprinkled as the odours in the streets of old China could sometimes be quite bad. The embossed vinaigrette is decorated on both sides. One boy is holding a reed organ and a flower basket as well as something which looks like a cornucopia from which clouds seem to emanate. Clouds symbolize the granting of all wishes. A boy with a reed organ (sheng) is a pun for giving birth and the image of the boy symbolizes the wish for a son. The flower basket is the attribute of the Immortal Lan Caihe and therefore serves as a symbol of Longevity. The boy on the other side of the vinaigrette looks like a medieval minstrel with a vase (Peace) in his hands. A peach symbolizes Longevity and another reed organ on the left represents the wish for many sons. The hook of this set depicts Western letters in random order without any logic. Letters of the Western alphabet were apparently fashionable at that time. The set has three tools, a tongue scraper and two picks. The scraper is hallmarked. The grooming set dates from the end of the Qing period (1644 – 1912) to the early Republic period (1912 – 1947). Total length 34 cm. Size scent box: Height 3 cm. Width 2.5 cm. Depth 0.6 cm.