Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Late 19th Century British Anglo-Japanese Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Brass
Early 20th Century British Art Deco Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Shagreen
1880s British Victorian Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Silver
1890s British Late Victorian Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Crocodile
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Metal
1970s Vintage Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Silver
1990s Italian Empire Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Sterling Silver, Enamel
1890s French Majolica Pottery Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Majolica
Early 20th Century English Edwardian Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Sterling Silver
Early 20th Century German Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Enamel
Early 20th Century American Art Deco Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Sterling Silver, Bronze
19th Century Belgian Art Nouveau Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Ceramic, Faience
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Wood
1850s French Napoleon III Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Brass
1950s Austrian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Brass
Late 19th Century Swiss Black Forest Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Fruitwood
19th Century English Early Victorian Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Sterling Silver
18th Century French Louis XV Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Enamel, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Macedonian Minimalist Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Walnut
Late 19th Century French Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Silver
20th Century German Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Silver
1850s British Early Victorian Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Glass, Wood
Early 20th Century Italian Art Deco Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Lapis Lazuli
2010s Italian Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Precious Stone
Early 1900s English Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Tortoise Shell
1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Vintage Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Lapis Lazuli, Malachite, Silver Plate, Brass
20th Century Indian Grand Tour Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Lapis Lazuli
1940s American Egyptian Revival Vintage Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Gold, Bronze
1970s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Silver
20th Century German Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Enamel
Late 19th Century Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Pottery
Early 20th Century American Renaissance Revival Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Metal
1980s Italian Art Deco Vintage Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Sterling Silver, Enamel
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Sterling Silver
Late 19th Century German Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Walnut
1840s Chinese Chinese Export Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Silver
1930s Austrian Art Deco Vintage Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Brass, Nickel
1930s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Stoneware
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Brass
Antique Cigar Boxes and Humidors
Cigars were not always packaged in what we now know as the antique cigar boxes and humidors that have over time become eye-catching decorative objects as well as collector’s items.
Outside the United States, cigar boxes are said to have originated in the 1840s when a German businessman, Hermann Dietrich Upmann of H. Upmann Cigars, bought a cigar factory and opened a bank in Havana, Cuba. Upmann reportedly handed out cedar cigar boxes branded with advertising for the bank as gifts to his banking clients. In the early 1860s, after years of cigars being shipped in big crates or barrels, cigar boxes became a requirement when the United States passed a law that mandated the use of boxes for tobacco producers, which was part of a broader effort to regulate the tobacco industry and generate revenue for the war effort. Humidors, which are moisture-controlled storage boxes that allow a cigar enthusiast to store, organize and preserve a larger collection of cigars, were very popular accessories during the early 1900s onward.
As the use of cigar boxes and humidors became widespread, all kinds of options materialized over the years, with particularly vibrant editions of these decorative objects emerging during the Art Nouveau, mid-century modern and other eras. Visionary designers like Isamu Noguchi popularized the idea of tobacco accessories as art with projects such as his decorative ashtrays.
Today, not unlike antique and vintage ashtrays, cigar boxes are more than practical objects. In fact, there are many uses for an old cigar box even after the cigars are gone. They can be used as planters, tissue boxes or can support your long-delayed effort to organize your sewing and craft supplies. During the Great Depression, an emptied cigar box — perhaps a walnut Art Deco-style cigar box with inlays in bronze and hand-carved decorative geometric patterns adorning its exterior — was occasionally repurposed as a jewelry box.
Antique and vintage cigar boxes — made of wood, metal or other materials — are valuable treasures in some corners of the collecting world, and in your home, they’re exquisite desk ornaments and colorful flourishes to add to your bookcase or mantel. On 1stDibs, find a variety of antique and vintage cigar boxes and other decorative boxes today.