Can anyone tell me what this item is?

[Gvalkyrie]

This is the front of the item, asyou can see it has a glass front>
This is the back of the item>
This picture shows a hole in the top, and a little drawer below the glass, that pulls out with a hole in it...

Can anyone tell me what this thing is, I saw in a thrift store and bought it on a whim for $2.00 

[fancypants]

I'd guess that your item is intended to be used as a "display" dispenser , for such items as : M&Ms , nuts , candy/gumballs & etc .... could have also have been used as a pipe tobacco dispenser (?) ...

[KC]

I agree with a dispenser....but M & M's would get stuck behind the "shelf" after it was pulled out.  I would think it would be for gumballs.  Larger/round and would move easily out of way when drawer was returned.

The hole at top is to refill.....Most likely had a plug or jar.  Is there any wear there?

Here's other variations....but haven't found one like yours.
http://www.etsy.com/listing/83731613/vintage-hand-made-wooden-candy-dispenser

[mart]

Mmmm,,,,Have to think about this one !!  Well,, its pretty new !!  Nothing on the bottom of it I don`t suppose ?? What is the size of the box and the size of the hole ??

[cogar]

I'd call it a "whimsey" cause I can't think of a practical purpose for it.

It's new construction and pretty well made.

A modern incense burner comes to mind.

I think the drawer is made to hold a saucer of some type in which ingredients are placed in and then the drawer is pushed back in. The glass is for observation and the top hole for fume escapement.   

[KevinM]

I think it looks like an animal feed dispenser used by tourist, visitors or guest to feed animals at a Zoo or Park of some type or to dispense fish food to throw out into a pond to feed large carp or other types of fish.

[talesofthesevenseas]

It is not very old since it is held together with Phillips head screws, which came about in the 1930's

[fancypants]

O.K. ... last guess ... I'll say that it was one of those "Regan-era" jellybean dispensers , popular with Republicans , to some degree .

The gen'l fittings & construction methods (as well as the 'style' of the whole thing) suggest (to me) that the item dates from the 1980's , either as a manufactured or home-built do-dad .

[cogar]

To be a dispenser of ?? ??, there should be a bottom shelf in the window cavity with a hole in it to match the hole in the drawer. If not, one pull-out of the drawer would allow the back of the drawer cavity to fill up with ?? ??.

[fancypants]

I'd say that the 'dispensing drawer' is made from a solid block of wood , with a concave hole ; said 'drawer' looks to have 'stops' installed to prevent it's removal , during use , and to limit it's travel to approx one-half of the length/depth of the solid-planked 'drawer' & in so being designed - the back half of the drawer/dispensing mechanism serves to block the lower opening of the upper hopper , which , I'd guess , is located fairly close to the front of the hopper . The concave dispenser opening would help to prevent any items from getting jammed between the hopper/bin & the dispensing drawer (esp anything 'round/rounded' , such as would happen if the hole was only a 90-degree (straight-sided) hole & unchamfered .

Make any sense to anyone else ?

[CuriousCollector]

This is the weirdest thing I've ever seen!

If there were a mirror in the back, I'd say it was some kind of lantern, with a candle going in the drawer's hole and the smoke going through the top's hole.  But then, why make a drawer for a candle? 

About the only thing I can say is that it was meant to display something that required ventilation, but that was not very large (hence the narrow drawer).   Now I'm worried it was meant to torment small animals.

Could it have been to show off some kind of chemical reaction?  I don't know enough about science, but if a small amount of SOMETHING were added to the drawer, if the drawer were pushed in, and if the SOMETHING then went down the hole into another area, it could interact in some way with a substance in the bottom of the box.  The top hole would still provide ventilation for the reaction, or might contain the reaction for a greater show.

[mart]

I'd say that the 'dispensing drawer' is made from a solid block of wood , with a concave hole ; said 'drawer' looks to have 'stops' installed to prevent it's removal , during use , and to limit it's travel to approx one-half of the length/depth of the solid-planked 'drawer' & in so being designed - the back half of the drawer/dispensing mechanism serves to block the lower opening of the upper hopper , which , I'd guess , is located fairly close to the front of the hopper . The concave dispenser opening would help to prevent any items from getting jammed between the hopper/bin & the dispensing drawer (esp anything 'round/rounded' , such as would happen if the hole was only a 90-degree (straight-sided) hole & unchamfered .

Make any sense to anyone else ?

Yes it does !!  That would eliminate peanuts in the shell !!  I am going with the jelly bean theory !! Time line would fit and about a palm full or 6 or 8 jelly beans is what it looks like it would dispense at one time !! There would still have to be a baffle of some sort to make it work right I think !!

[fancypants]

...forgot to suggest that the OP might want to unscrew the top trim give the interior a good sniff (for clues) , remove the glass (& clean it) , while brushing out any residue in the unit ... maybe some stale stuff might give the answer as to 'what' it dispensed (?) ... but since the OP has just this one posting ............  perhaps we'll never know ....