Inlay Decorative Boxes

Rectangular cherrywood box with square parquetry in various woods. The lid is fitted with a bronze key escutcheon and handle. A sliding side mechanism with a removable panel reveals ...

Antique 19th century Anglo-Indian jewelry, trinket footed box, inlay with ebony, mosaic marquetry Sadeli work and a carved Hindu scene on top. The box case is made from sandalwood wi...

Rare Engine Turned Design The Sewing Box of slight sarcophagus shape stood upon four turned ribbed feet. The Sewing Box tapers up to the convex raised lid and features scrolling fl...

19th century inlaid Killarney ware writing slope circa 1870. Beautiful Irish killarney region writing slope, beautifully inlaid with the various woods they used to craft with. Killa...

A fine and elegant Korean black lacquer and abalone mother of pearl inlay "longevity" box, circa 1930s, Korea. The box, most likely used to sto...

Circa 1870 "Trinity House" sewing work box, English. Walnut inlaid with exotic woods. From 1850-1880 the men who manned the lighthouses were known for crafting these boxes to while a...

This is a truly unique antique box, not only does it have a faux book front. Fine inlay detail to the top - showcasing birds but it has a very cool hidden document storage...

This exceptional, 18 carat gold Easter egg was crafted by the famous London-based royal jewellers, Asprey & Co. The piece was then retailed by Garrard & Co, who once worked in collaboration with Asprey, producing luxury jewellery and silver for an elite clientele. The egg has been crafted from gold filigree — that is, gold wires interwoven to make a delicate lace-like pattern. The gold is arranged to form the image of a peacock, with a magnificent fanned train, composed of red, dark blue and green coloured plique-à-jour enamel. The light blue body of the peacock, and its long swirling light and dark blue tail feathers, have been crafted from intricate guilloché enamel, which is often found on Fabergé style eggs...

1950s Anglo Indian Micro Sadeli Mosaic Inlaid Jewelry Box. DIMENSIONS: 7ʺW × 7ʺD × 2.5ʺH. Indo Persian Moorish style micro mosaic inlaid jewelry box with lid. Intricate inlaid Anglo ...

An Anglo Indian Rectangular Porcupine Quill & Bone Box, 20th Century Description: Constructed from wood, featuring naturally shed porcupine quills inlaid between decorative band...

A stunning vintage Moorish arabesque inlaid table box, 20th century, high quality rectangular box with hinged lid, featuring contrasting mother of pearl, exotic hardwood, and bone marquetry inlay arranged in geometric patterns, opening to red fabric lined interior. Dimensions: (approx) 3" High, 16.75" Wide, 6 1/8" Deep; 3.2lbs As warm and attractive as it is functional, having the ideal large size and proportions for a variety of different uses, including concealing a remote control on your coffee table or sofa table, or as a jewelry casket, trinket case...

This is a wonderful antique French Gonçalo Alves marquetry and ormolu mounted casket, circa 1860 in date. The casket of bureau form has a lift up top and is inlaid with a marquetry ...

A fine and unusual Japanese black lacquer and mother of pearl inlaid box, Momoyama Period, 16th century, Japan. The large box and cover featu...

A beautiful 'as is' late 18th or early 19th century example of 'Marqueterie de Paille', or straw marquetry, work box. The top inlaid with a wonderful cityscape, with early architectu...

Antique 19th century French Boulle/Napoleon III marquetry box. The wooden box is decorated with inlaid brass and tortoiseshell and red silk textile inside. Including key. Signed: Aud...

Vintage Middle Eastern Persian Khatam Trinket Box with Miniature Art Painting. This hand-painted, lacquered wooden box features Moorish micro mosaic marquetry, perfect for holding sm...

Like an ancient pebble or river-rock that has been tumbled for centuries to polish and reveal its alluvial layers. Hand-turned solid oak box enveloped in lacquered eggshell marquetry.

Maitland Smith 1980s large tessellated stone and brass inlay decorative box. Light pink stone with light pink detailing. Brass banding retains unpolished patina.

This box is a jewelry box or a decorative box. It was made in the 1970s, in France. Its lid is made of a checkerboard rectangle in wood. It is brown in color.

Heavily Inlaid with Mother of Pearl and Abalone From our Writing Box collection, we are pleased to offer this stunning Antique Inlaid Writing Box by Hausburg. The Writing Box of rec...

Antique French Napoleon III box with inlaid bronze decor, polished black color surface and red velour textile inside. Includes key. After the r...

"Japanese Kusuri Dansu – Apothecary Box With Yosegi Marquetry & Raden Inlays " A finely crafted Japanese Kusuri Dansu (薬箪笥), or apothecary chest, featuring exceptional geometric marq...

An English burl mahogany and inlay jewelry box from the 1800’s. The top of this square box has an inlaid cartouche of ebony, birdseye maple, and oak with brass banding. The box opens...

Large vintage Moorish wedding jewelry box inlaid with semi-precious agate stones and covered with brass and silvered metal filigree. Large circular Moorish Middle East jewelry...

Stunning mosaic design, this intricate quite large wood jewelry box is made from multiple micro pieces of wood, mother of pearl with some possib...

Precious rectangular sewing box in rosewood veneer called. Uncovered, it presents a mirror with braids on the back of the lid. This charming sewing set is lined with moire and pink velvet and is composed of two small square porcelain bottles with openwork polychrome flowers, marked "L" on the bottom, a removable rectangular pad supporting two spools of gold thread and finely chiseled with a central chiseled cartridge-shaped, overhung by a button. A central tray on a raised base holds five sewing items...

Beautiful Scholz & Lammel boxe from the 1960s made of wood with enamel top. You could use it for cigaretts, little things like jewelry or small accessories. Price for one box.  

This box is a jewelry box or a decorative box. It was made in the 1970s, in France. Its lid is made of a checkerboard rectangle in Brass, and wood. It is gold and brown in color.

French wood box decorated with marquetry including a stars and geometrical patterns. Straw marquetry was a common technique in the early 20th century. Straw was dyed different colors...

PRESENTING an ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS and EXTREMELY UNIQUE and RARE 19C British Tunbridgeware Micromosaic Lap Desk. This lap desk is unlike any of it’s kind we have seen before. From c...

Embriachi workshop marquetry casket Northern Italy, 15th century Alla certosina inlays (bone, stained bone, pewter and wood) H 28.2 x W 18 x D 14 cm This beautiful casket of rectangular form is richly decorated with the characteristic geometric patterns of the Embriachi style. The intricate geometric patterns are fashioned by juxtaposing lighter and darker pieces of wood, (colored) bone, horn and pewter. The lid and base are framed by a broad band of horn. When ivory became scarce in Europe due to disrupted trade routes, bone was substituted. The attention to Symmetry and balance created an harmonious visual effect Enhancing the overall aesthetic appeal of the casket. The application of geometrical motifs is in Italy known as marquetry ‘alla Certosina’, named after the Certosina Church in Pavia with its famous altarpiece decorated in this way. This is ‘intarsia technique’, a term derived from the Arabic 'tarsi', which means ‘incrustation' recalling ancient mosaics made from various materials. These geometric elements not only enhance the aesthetic appeal of the caskets but also demonstrate the versatility and skill of the artisans in creating multifaceted works of art. ‘Alla Certosina’ became famous through the Northern Italian Embriachi family who achieved a particularly high standard in working in this technique. Venice in particular was known for the production of these luxurious boxes. The caskets, hexagonal or rectangular, surmounted by a lid decorated in several registers constitute the secular, albeit equally renowned component of the workshop’s production, in addition to mirror frames and various everyday objects. The method of fabrication of those objects was based on two concepts that underlay pre-industrial production: standardization and modularity, thanks to a distribution of skills according to the different phases of fabrication. even the realization of the marquetry motifs (in the form of ingots from which portions of the desired size were cut) were therefore entrusted to various specialized craftsmen, as were the assembly phase. Today better known thanks to the extensive research work recently carried out by Michele Tomasi, this workshop owes its name to its founder and owner, the Florentine Baldassare Ubriachi (or degli Embriachi), a merchant and banker established in the Tuscan capital before he settled in Venice in 1395. Together with sculptor Giovanni di Jacopo, who directed the workshop, from the last years of the fourteenth century, Baldassare oversaw a production that was truly original, and still easily recognizable today, comprising monumental altarpieces and various objects, primarily triptychs and caskets. The precise location of the workshop is unknown, except that it originated in Florence and in ca. 1431 there was apparently a workshop in Venice, in the area of S Luca. They employed local workers specializing in 'certosina' (inlay of stained woods, bone and horn), and the workshop produced items carved in bone (usually horse or ox) with wood and bone marquetry. The geometric decoration of Embriachi caskets reflects the artistic complexity and attention to detail that characterized their work. this inlaid casket is a testament to the skill and artistry of the Embriachi family and serves as a stunning example of the decorative arts of the late Middle Ages. Related Literature : E. Berger, Prunk-Kassetten: Europäischen Meisterwerke aus acht Jahrhunderten / Ornamental Caskets...

18th century inlaid mahogany Georgian serpentine knife box circa 1790 Good quality decorative box, serpentine fronted and an inlaid with a shell patera to the hinged lid. Many other...

Antique handcrafted wooden Persian khatam pen box. This Pen Box is completely Khatam handmade design very detailed fine work in and out. Middle Eastern Persian...

An important early antique Italian Renaissance table box, handcrafted in Northern Italy in the 17th/18th century, cassone chest form, richly inlaid, the top and front panel with fruitwood banding framing...

An antique 18th century New England dovetailed and boxwork inlaid document chest in butternet and walnut.

19th century American folk art box with decorated with inlaid hearts, diamonds, triangles and shields. Possibly sailor made, this sweet little box was likely a valentine or keepsake ...

A charming scarce Spanish Colonial era parquetry inlaid cedar legged storage chest (large table box / small trunk) with nicely aged warm rich dark patina. circa 1790 Rustic handmade...

Unique and all handcrafted, wrought iron box attr. to Hugo Berger Goberg. It is always refreshing to find an antique object probably by a famous maker, that you have never seen befo...

An English 19th century decorative box with lift up lid opening on original brass hinges to reveal a good sized storage compartment lined with the original hand-crafted sapphire blue...

This Tunbridge box still bank is indigenous to the Tunbridge ware cottage industries of the town of Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England in the 18th and 19th c...

Water flowing over rocks creates a contrast between the sparkle of the water and the relative opacity of the rocks. In these boxes black lacquer pours over natural shells that glow a...

19th century Anglo-Indian Mughal wood box, inlaid and hand carved with the Taj Mahal and some flowers all around. Jewelry box, Anglo-Raj box from India in great condition. Nice Mughal Bombay Box...

The Paris based label has distinguished themselves since their launch, with their iconic use of shagreen mixed with brass and other exotic materials. All furniture is handcrafted by skilled artisans, ultimately making each piece unique, designed in Paris and produced in the Philippines. The Dandy Box is a chic accent piece for your home. The piece is lined with a removable velvet tray...

Mid 19th century Tunbridge ware stationery box by Edmund Nye, manufacturer. The dome-shaped top is inlaid with a specimen parquetry panel, crossbanded with boxwood and stringing and...

With a Fitted Sewing Box Interior From our Tunbridge Ware collection, we are delighted to offer this Tunbridge Ware Sewing Box. The Rosewood box of rectangular form extensively inla...

There is type of English sweet called a Licorice Allsort. They are made in different layers and some have little balls covering them. The red lacquer and the little white pieces of e...

A stunning Japanese Edo period lacquer tanzakubako, box for poem cards, late 18th-early 19th century, Edo Period, Japan. Attributed to the Igarashi School, this box is masterfully ...

Harlequin Pop Up Secret Compartment From our Writing Box collection, we are pleased to offer this Antique Coromandel and Satinwood lined Writing Box by Fisher. The Writing Box of re...

Exuding timeless sophistication, this exquisite, straw marquetry lidded box is attributed to the legendary French designer Jean-Michel Frank (1895-1941). With its elongated rectangul...

19th century victorian burr walnut desk top writing slope circa 1870. Fine quality english made victorian writing slope.  Exterior of rich burr walnut with tunbridge ware inlay deco...

PRESENTING A GORGEOUS 19C Anglo Indian Highly Carved Sadeli Mosaic Sarcophagus Sewing Box. Made in Bombay, India circa 1860-80. Box made of sandalwood with highly carved teak wood reliefs and panels on all sides. Edged with bone and ebony veneers and glorious sadeli mosaic, made from tiny pieces of faux ivory, pewter, green semi-precious stone. The box is in a sarcophagus form with domed lid. The original brass carry handles are on the sides. The interior is in great condition and consists of a removeable mirror under the lid portion, with the original red velvet lining behind it. The base is removeable and contains a number of lidded compartments. 6 of the interior lids on the base, are each inlaid with sadeli mosaic banding. The rest are also carved and chased. The interior is fully complete with 7 lidded faux ivory/bone, thread canisters with sadeli domes and the original bone thimble. The box sits on 4 brass ball or bun feet with the original velvet lining on the base. Some minor repairs and losses, but this box is fully complete. This is ‘rare’ as many of these boxes have not survived in such condition! Included in the sale are 2 photos that were in the box (under the base tray). Interestingly, one of them is a view of downtown Nassau, New Providence (Bermuda) from the early 20C and stamped on the rear. What a ‘journey’ this piece has made! Made in India … travelled to Bermuda, probably via Britain … back to Ireland (where we bought it) …. then to Texas! These boxes were made by superb Indian craftsmen, specifically for sale to the ruling British elite. These types of boxes, carved padouk and sandalwood, (whilst beautiful and superbly crafted) were of a lesser quality, than the more profusely and intricately mosaic inlay, tortoiseshell and ivory boxes, made for the British ‘Upper Classes’ in the areas of Bombay and Vizagapatam. These type of boxes were much more affordable back in 1880 (and indeed today) and would probably have been bought by mid-level diplomats, civil servants or visitors. Sewing boxes (in general), were in EVERY Victorian home in Britain in the 19th Century and like other boxes etc were ‘status symbols’ of your place in society! The more ornate the box, the more ‘Upper Class’ you were! Of it’s type, this one, is one of the very higher quality one’s, than the norm! SADELI MOSAIC: “Anglo Indian boxes were made in India for the English residents from the early part of the 18th century. They were brought back or sent back to England usually by the people who had commissioned them. From the beginning of the nineteenth century they were imported more commercially, although not in any significant numbers until the middle decades. They were very highly valued, especially the early ones, to the extent that the designs were copied on late 19th and early 20th century tins. The ancient art of Sadeli Mosaic is said to have been introduced from Shiraz in Persia via Sind to Bombay, a long time before the Anglo Indian boxes were made. It was a technique, which required a high degree of skill and patience. It was executed very lavishly, in that the frequent cuts wasted a great amount of the precious materials used. The workmanship was however more than commensurable to the value of the materials. Ivory, silver, pewter (or other metals), wood and horn were cut into faceted rods which were bound together to form geometric patterns. When the glue has set, the rods were sliced in transverse sections. This gave the maker a number of angled circular pieces in the original pattern. Several variations of patterns could be achieved by combining the materials in different ways. The ivory was sometimes dyed green to give an extra color. The mosaic pieces in a combination of patterns, often separated by ivory, ebony, horn or silver stringing were used to veneer sandalwood boxes. In the early boxes, which date from the turn of the 18th to the 19th century, there are large panels of mosaic covering tops and sides of boxes. It took incredible skill to cover such large areas without any shakes or wavering of the pattern. The corners and joins on these boxes are impeccably matched. The makers (reputed to be Persian) of Sadeli mosaic made in the first two decades of the 19th century displayed a total understanding of the qualities of the different materials they used. They combined substances, which can expand and contract according to atmospheric conditions with others, which are hard and unyielding. The result was a sharp definition of the lines and patterns, which made up the whole design. On the early boxes the designs look deceptively simple. The fact is, they emerged from a culture, which had mastered geometry and understood how to generate a pattern from a set number of points. The patterns are so harmoniously combined that their incredible complexity is not immediately apparent. The earliest Sadeli boxes...

A small low table with lacquer and intricate mother-of-pearl inlay design from Ryukyu Islands kingdom circa 17-18th century. Ryukyuan kingdom was used to be an independent island cou...

This is a French bronze metal overlayed round glass hand painted vanity/powder jar. The glass jar is decorated with a pattern of pierced columns of flowers alternated with engraved l...

Water flowing over rocks creates a contrast between the sparkle of the water and the relative opacity of the rocks. In these boxes black lacquer pours over natural shells that glow a...

A handsome piece of early Tunbridge Ware dating to around 1835, William IV in era. Made from wood this small stationery box is decorated with intricate Tunbridge Stickware inlay. The interior has been professionally re-lined in a handsome hand-marbled paper; the size of the interior would suit...

Dome Topped Stationary Box From our Box collection, we are delighted to offer this Antique English Boulle Stationery Box by Leuchars & Sons. The box of rectangular form with a domed...

The Paris based label has distinguished themselves since their launch, with their iconic use of shagreen mixed with brass and other exotic materials. All furniture is handcrafted by ...

Always Free Worldwide Shipping Outstanding Feathered Walnut Veneer From our Decanter collection, we are thrilled to offer this rare example Antique Burr Walnut Decanter Box attrib...

Simple and elegant antique jewelry box with inlaid wood top, circa 1930s. The piece is more of a decorative item than functional; the top opens u...

Fitted Tunbridge Ware Sewing Box Interior From our Tunbridge Ware collection, we are delighted to offer this Tunbridge Ware Sewing Box. The Rosewood box of rectangular form extensiv...