Krista,
The "Rd No 47843" suggests it was registered in the British system.
Geoffrey Godden's Encyclopedia of British Pottery and Porcelain Marks on
page 527 lists the Registry numbers for 1886 began with 40480 and for 1887
began with 64520 indicating your find was registered in 1886. R & S may be
an English company, but not necessary. You might want to look through
Godden. Hope things are going well at Wayne State where I began my
career.
Peace,
George L. Miller
On Sat, Dec 13, 2014 at 12:39 PM, Krista Eggleston <
[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> This is a square ceramic 'box' that is 2 cm by 2 cm on the surface and
> about 1cm X 2cm on the sides. It was found in Detroit at a site dating back
> to the early 1900s. On the surface are the letters 'R&S' underneath is 'Rd
> No 47843'. We believed it may be a component to something electrical in
> nature but have been unable to find anything it would belong to. Link to
> the photo is below:
>
>
> http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah242/kristaeggleston/Yeoldcomputerkeyinfield_zpsc9f5c592.jpg
>
> Thanks in advance for the help!
>