Japanese Silver Trinket Box with Full Moon & Grass, c. 1900

This lovely silver box exemplifies Japanese refinement in all crafts. The petite bonbonnière is formed of high quality silver with a rectangular cartouche form and a removable lid. T...

For one short decade, from around 1910 to 1920, pewter was all the rage in China’s bustling commercial centers of Shanghai and Canton. Drawn to pewter’s soft, silvery glow, artists t...

A small brass canister once used to store a smoker's personal supply of opium paste. A keepsake from a bygone era, the small box dates to the 19th century and is decorated with etchi...

A petite bronze canister once used to store a smoker's personal supply of opium paste. A keepsake from a bygone era, the small box dates to the early 20th century and provided an air...

This antique engraved sterling silver cigarette or decorative box was made in Japan in approximately 1900 in the period Japonisme style. The box is composed of an ebonized hardwood c...

Offered is a stunning Sheffield silver keepsake box dating to 1900, with associated hallmark. This small box includes a clean interior and rounded corners. The box is free of names or initials, but would have been used to house keepsakes such as jewelry or cufflinks. A well maintained, elegant piece, this antique silver box is an excellent addition to any silver 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...

Oblong sterling silver hinged table box. The body of the box is smooth. The lid is smooth with embossed bellflowers The lid is embossed and chiseled with bellflowers-shaped motifs Th...

A lovely silver plate textured box from Paris. A wonderful decorative piece with a wooden interior. The box is a compliment to any cocktail table, desk ...