Topic: Mystery Object Pressed Glass item love to know more????:)

[LEGSY]

Charity shopping to day in my local town i came across this unusual piece i cant see any marks
or rd numbers but looks English pressed glass has a slight purple hue to it. My initial thought was a
pipe rest but think it would not leave enough space when they were placed into the holes for this idea to be usefull
hopefully somebody would know its use maybe the maker which would be superb thank you for looking

61/4" tall approx

[catshome]

Universal candle holder?  Hard to tell from pics if the smaller holes would accommodate tapers?

Interesting piece......look forward to finding out more about it!

[chopin-liszt]

Is there any evidence of wear?
It looks "sun-purpled" with age, but I'm aware that that was an effect that was popular at one time and some unscrupulous folk deliberately accelerated the process; (I think it was in America, where they had access to rooftops for laying stuff out and the opportunity to be given a LOT of exposure to excessive sunshine;  )
There are "fakes" out there.
Having said that, this does look to be an old sort of thing. Possibly some fancy barware or something for pickles?
Something that might require tiny forks or cocktail sticks and somewhere to present them or dispose of them?

[catshome]

Looking at the cutting on the outside of the base.....would it be rough enough to strike an old vesta match?  Would cigarettes fit in the small holes around it?

[chopin-liszt]

It's pressed, not cut, Cat. 
You can see that when you look at the base - which I didn't properly at first, because if I had, I would have known there was plenty of wear and would not have needed to ask. 

[LEGSY]

 :)Just thought id try and a match would strike on the textured section and seems to fit matches well

[chopin-liszt]

I didn't realised there was a bottom in that bit - where you've put the matches.
I assume the centre well in the maind body is deep enough to have held the shorter old cigarettes folk used to smoke, and the outside ring is just to leave some out for visitors. They could be replenished from the centre pot.

Even I'm not old enough to remember when cigarettes were left out for everybody to help themselves, although I do remember fug-filled rooms whenever there were big people around.

It's a cigarette dispenser.