Historical information

A tray is a shallow platform designed for the carrying of items. It can be fashioned from numerous materials, including silver, brass, tin, sheet iron, paperboard, wood, melamine, and moulded pulp. Trays range in cost from inexpensive moulded pulp trays which are disposable and inexpensive melamine trays used in cafeterias, to mid-priced wooden trays used in a home, to expensive silver trays used in luxury hotels. Some examples have raised galleries, handles, and short feet for support.

Trays are flat, but with raised edges to stop things from sliding off them. They are made in a range of shapes but are commonly found in oval or rectangular forms, sometimes with cutout or attached handles with which to carry them.

A more elaborate device is the tray table, which is designed to accommodate a tray, or to serve as a tray itself. There are two primary kinds of tray tables.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tray

Significance

The use of the tray, and the various types.

Physical description

Metal rectangular tray with rounded edges and abstract design. Rusty.

Inscriptions & markings

The design now looks abstract, but there are signs that it may have been a floral design originally.