Once Upon A Time....
....there was the briefcase!
Briefcases are descendants of the limp satchel used in the fourteenth century for carrying money and valuables. It was called a "budget", derived from the Latin word "bulga" or Irish word "bolg", both meaning leather bag and also the source of the financial term "budget."
Godillot of Paris was the first to use a hinged iron frame on a carpet bag in 1826. The Gladstone bag followed and the Rosebery, an oval-top bag. Eventually these became the modern metal-framed briefcase. The first of what is known as the modern rectangular briefcase is said to have been invented in the late 1850s.
Just like the man in the gray flannel suit disappeared from American offices during the 1990s, so did the classic attaché cases he used to carry. Demand for hard-sided briefcases has plummeted over the past 20 years - replaced by laptop bags, messenger bags and even backpacks.