Women in the Old West often carried small, concealable pocket pistols as a last line of personal defense. Whether a “soiled dove” or a married woman about town, ladies in rough and tumble frontier towns had to be ready to dispatch an assailant at a moment’s notice. This Antique ca. 1870s Old West Sterling Silver Engraved & Bronze Female Embellished Lady's Powder Flask is in Very Good Condition, with a sizable dent in one edge of the engraved heart, a slight dent in the opposite edge of that engraved heart, and with some light overall cleaning, polishing, and age wear evident. Most interestingly, it measures 3 5/8” x 1 1/2”, sports a fully functional opening and closing mechanism on the top spout, and is constructed of exquisitely engraved solid sterling silver. It bears deeply cut scroll and punch dot engraving centered by a heart left smooth at one side, with the initials “EID” artfully engraved in the middle of that heart, exhibits the bust of a beautiful woman with a coif of flowing hair crafted in bronze relief at the other side, and is stamped at the upper portion of that side with its content, “925 / 1000” and “STERLING”. It’s unmarked as to its maker, though was clearly crafted by a talented jeweler in the ca. 1860s-1880s before the advent of smokeless powder, weighs about 35 grams, and is a fine example of a very rare, original Antique ca. 1870s Old West Sterling Silver Engraved & Bronze Female Embellished Lady's Powder Flask.