This is one of my favourite things. I found it when I was a young lad in the attic of my Great-uncle's cottage in Hungary.

It is a little carved case that slides open to reveal a little slither of mirror.

I couldn't believe it when he said I could keep it as it seemed so wonderful to me, and I've treasured it ever since.

All my family comes from solid Hungarian peasant stock. The cottage I found it in was an ancient peasant dwelling made of mud and straw.

I have no idea who carved this, but I imagine one of my ancestors made it as a keepsake for his beloved.

When I was growing up in London, we used to go over to deepest, rural Hungary to visit the family, who were all still working the land and keeping animals in a way unchanged for centuries.

My Grandmother is 90 and still keeps chickens and ducks and pigs but the rest has all been swept away by the modern world. This little thing serves to remind me of where I came from.