Mappin & Webb Ltd Art Deco Style Sterling Silver Cigarette Box

An exceptional, fine and impressive vintage Elizabeth II English sterling silver cigarette/jewelry box; an addition to the ornamental silverware collection. This exceptional vintage Elizabeth II silver box has a plain rectangular form. The surface of this impressive antique cigarette box...

A fine and impressive, unusual and large vintage German sterling silver cigar box with maritime interest; an addition to the ornamental silverware collection. This fine vintage German sterling silver cigar box has a plain rectangular rounded form in the Art Deco manner. The surface of this large, impressive vintage cigar box...

An exceptional, fine and impressive hallmarked antique Edward VIII English sterling silver cigarette/cigar box; an addition to the Edwardian silverware collection. This exceptional antique Edward VIII sterling silver cigarette box...

An exceptional, fine and impressive antique George V English sterling silver cigarette or cigar box; an addition to the ornamental silverware collection. This exceptional antique George V sterling silver cigarette box has a plain rectangular form. The sides of this impressive antique cigarette...

Elizabeth II sterling silver box. Made by Mappin & Webb in Birmingham in 1965. Rectangular with straight sides. Cover hinged with flat top and scalloped tab. Interior cedar-lined and...

Hallmarked in London in 1915 by James Samuel Bell, this very handsome, Antique Sterling Silver Cigar Box, is double sided and plain in design, with a...

Art Deco Period, sterling silver table box, Poole Silver Co., Taunton, Mass., Ca. 1930's. Wood-lined. Measures 6 inches wide x 3 inches deep x 1 3/4 inches high. Underside is covered...

Offered is a stunning silver plated keepsake box dating to 1900, with associated hallmark. This small box includes a wooden interior with two slots and a blank square on top where initials could have been engraved. A well maintained, elegant piece, this antique silver box is an excellent addition to any silver or home decor collection. Trinket or keepsake boxes have taken on many forms since their first conception in ancient times. However their purpose remains the same; to store jewelry and other items precious to the owner. Originally, these boxes were used specifically for jewelry. These were in common use as early as 5000 BC in Ancient Egypt, when the majority of Egyptians, both male and female, wore jewelry. Boxes were used to keep these gemstone encrusted items safe. In Ancient Rome, jewelry was a status symbol. Rings and brooches were utilized to represent ones status in society. Again, boxes were needed for security and storage purposes. Finding early examples of these are quite rare. Victorian and Edwardian examples of trinket boxes are far more common. This is because owning jewellery was a luxury until the Victorian era- let alone possessing so much a box was needed to store it all. Fine jewelry and other items became available to the masses after the industrial revolution due to the reduction in production costs. This led to a demand for trinket boxes, which were much smaller than jewelry boxes and therefore better suited to the needs of the middle class who did not yet possess an abundance of jewelry. In Victorian households, collectables and other items of interested were also stashed inside these boxes. This is why they are known as trinket or keepsake boxes, rather than just jewelry boxes, although of course jewelry was also stored in them. Trinket boxes were produced in large numbers around this time. Many were lined with colored plush or velvet or rich wood. More elaborate designs had interior divisions and trays for rings and other pieces of jewellery. It was also common to see trinket boxes so small that they could only contain one item, such as a single ring. Ornate exteriors were created to reflect the value of the trinket boxes contents. The Edwardian era saw the introduction of new styles of trinket box. These included small circular or oblong boxes...