19th Century Chinese Cinnabar Lacquered Wedding Box

This simple lacquered box was once used as a 19th-century snack box, presented as a gift during holidays and special occasions. To the delight of the recipients, the unassuming box w...

This finely lacquered box was once presented as a gift, filled with popular snacks like roasted melon seeds, dried fruit, and cinnamon-toasted soy beans. Dated to the late 19th centu...

In many southeast Asian cultures, offering guests a betel quid to chew was the fundamental symbol of hospitality. A blend of leaves, nuts, seasonings, and sometimes tobacco, betel was kept in finely worked and decorated boxes. This round container was originally the lid to a Burmese betel box...

Dated to the early 20th-century, this small woven box is a timeless example of Burmese lacquerware. Made of woven bamboo strips, the box is coated in a putty-like substance known as ...

19th century Chinese lacquer sewing box from the Qing dynasty. Colored black and gold all-over beautifully with intricate designs.

An 18th/19th Century Chinese cinnabar circular box with multiple cartouches of Families. This is a marvelous piece with very fine details on the main top panel of the box. The top pa...

19th century Chinese lacquer sewing box from the Qing Dynasty. Decorated beautifully all over with intricate designs and images of ancient C...

This intriguing Chinese zhadou is intricately carved of fine cinnabar lacquer. A work of exceptional artistry, this covered bowl is adorned with an intricately carved floral motif on all surfaces, including the cover and the wide rim. Also known as a cuspidor or spittoon, this rare container would have been used by members of the imperial family and scholar- officials at the court. Carved during the Kangxi period (1662-1722), this charming piece exhibits the high detail and charm associated with items from that period, making it a true treasure, Early 18th century (Kangxi dynasty) Measures: 6 ¼” wide x 3 ¼” high Cinnabar has been revered for its color all over the world. It has been found in the royal burial chambers of the Mayas, in the rituals of India, and in the ruins of ancient Greece and Rome. In China, cinnabar and gold were the two most important elements in alchemy. Mined since the Neolithic Age, cinnabar is the ore of mercury, and as such, it can be incredibly toxic, especially when mining. In fact, during the Roman Empire, miners at Spain’s Almadén mine in Spain were frequently exposed to mercury fumes, and the subsequent, often fatal, sickness was considered an occupational hazard. The most popular known use of cinnabar is in Chinese carved lacquer-ware, a technique that is believed to have originated in the Song Dynasty, in which cinnabar is ground to a powder and added to clear lacquer. As with mining, there was inherent danger of mercury poisoning for those who carved the lacquer, as mercury was also released into the air when artisans ground the pigments. Most antique cinnabar...