This silver cigarette case decorated with Chinese dragons was a present from the conjuror known as Chung Ling Soo (1861-1918) to the otherwise anonymous 'PMT'. It is undated but may well have been presented after 1890 when tax was no longer payable on silver, making small items became even more affordable. Advertisements in newspapers and ladies' magazines stressed the cheapness and enormous variety of silver for 'artistic and useful presents'. Consumers appreciated the enhanced status of owning a piece of silver, however small. From a practical point of view, the metal was durable and adaptable to a range of uses, often performing a similar role to the plastics of today.

Chung Ling Soo was an American of Scottish descent. He was born William Elsworth Robinson in New York. Originally billed as Hop Ling Soo, Robinson’s stage name and many of his tricks were inspired by Ching Ling Foo, a real Chinese conjurer working in America. Robinson made London his home. The public there loved the mystical image he cultivated with the help of promotional items, posters and stationery featuring Chinese icons. He even used an interpreter for interviews. When Foo appeared at the Empire in January 1905, near the Hippodrome where Robinson was performing, Foo challenged him to a competition. Since Foo never turned up for the challenge, Anderson was declared the winner. Chung Ling Soo died in March 1918 at the Wood Green Empire. He was killed during his spectacular bullet-catching act, which he had performed successfully for 16 years.