18th Century and Earlier Boxes

A rare George III "Drum" Tea Caddy made in London in 1776 by John Deacon. The Tea Caddy is modelled in the rare Drum form which was only produced for a short time during the 1770's ...

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...

Fine quality circa 1790 Georgian letter box, with three compartment fitted interior (see image). Exterior has original double brass hinged slope top with serpentine shaped front, and...

An exceptional antique early Georgian English sterling silver tobacco box; an addition to our smoking related silverware collection This dine antique George I sterling silver tobacco box has a plain oval rounded form. The surface of the box is plain and embellished with fine engraved circular motifs and leaf decoration to the cover hinge. The flush hinged hallmarked cover is ornamented with the contemporary engraved inscription ‘Richard Smart’ to the centre, in addition to a simplified engraved shell and scrolling leaf design to the shaped thumbpiece. This impressive Georgian tobacco box has an exceptional color and patination. This antique tobacco box...

This important German porcelain box exhibits delightful artistry and craftsmanship. Its hand-painted wild game scene celebrates the natural world,...

A charming satin and rosewood, ebony and teak collectors’ table-cabinet Sri Lanka, second half of the 18th century Measures: H. 86.5 x W. 62.5 x D. 34.7 cm In the top of the shaped cornice, there is a carving of a butterfly or moth. Under the cornice two panelled doors with scorched chequered motif, and under the doors one long drawer. When the doors are locked, so is the drawer. Behind the two doors, there are eight drawers, suitable to store small collectors’ items, such as a coin collection, or mineral specimens, small shells, collections of animal teeth, etc. The 17th and 18th centuries saw a wide-spread interest in exotic cultures and collecting of botanical, zoological and geological specimens...

The rectangular hinged top with canted corners inlaid with a Turkish landscape design with an inside lift top and a lower drawer the interior fitted with a removable tray and mahogan...

Circa 1750. Tortoiseshell and mother of pearl box with sliding top from Mexico 18th century. Beautiful designs all over. As is condition.

Meissen Gilt-Metal Mounted Etui / Bodkin Case, circa 1755, cylindrical case painted with floral trails between blue-scale borders, the ends painted with pe...

Not only Sleeping Beauty's hair has the color of ebony wood, so do a number of details of this antique spinning wheel. The well shaped lances and bu...

Box ‘Cheveux de Vénus moulded pressed white glass with original sienna patina Model by René Lalique created in 1910. Signature engraved on the wheel. Height : 6 cm diameter : 6,...

Casket Baroque, around 1760, birch burl and walnut, round lid with folding star inlay and pewter thread inlays, original lock and fittings, shellac hand polish Dimensions: Height: 14 cm Width: 26 cm Depth: 20 cm Most pieces of furniture from the Baroque era date from the period between 1670 and around 1750. Starting with strict but pompous forms, Baroque furniture developed into playful pieces of furniture with numerous curves and magnificent fittings by the middle of the 18th century. Baroque chests of drawers mostly date from the period between 1720 and 1750 and feature multiple curved fronts and veneer marquetry. Baroque tables and chairs feature lavishly curved legs, the lower ends of which end in volutes or animal hooves. Towards the end of the Baroque period and the Rococo period, the curved legs of tables and chairs merge into the frames in a single sweep. Baroque cabinets are usually disproportionately large by today's living standards, as they originally stood in castles. Heights of 2.40 to 2.60 meters are not uncommon for baroque cabinets. In early Baroque furniture...

A magnificent, fine and impressive pair of antique George II English sterling silver toilet boxes; an addition to our Georgian silverware collection. These...

The exterior surface decorated with striking geometric panels of contrasting light & dark fruitwood veneers with ebonized mouldings, the slant top opening on later iron hinges to a plain interior housing a small hinged compartment for writing implements...

SILVER BOX Austria-Hungary 18th Century in silver with profuse decoration inspired by the Crimean War, in which Russia lost to an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, United K...

Mexican cabinet. Made of tortoiseshell, pen-engraved and wood. Possible Oaxaca or Puebla, 17th century.

Very funny little snuff box with a text about Etimologie; the true learning or real learning, on the lids outside and a hidden erotic motive on the inside of the lid.

A very fine late 18th century, George III period mahogany knife box or cutlery canteen with fitted interior. Figured sloping lid over a serpentine front with satinwood crossbanding a...

Prince of Wales Feathers From our Tea Caddy collection, we are delighted to offer this Antique Satinwood Tea Caddy. The Tea Caddy of elongated hexagonal form edged in Ebony with del...

An 18th Century South Staffordshire Writing Box, decorated with serpentine front, pink ground reserved with a riverscape panel, the interior retaining 3 glass jarlets with metal moun...

A nice letter box. It has great brass hardware.

A mid-18th century Chippendale period figured mahogany tea caddy, ebony beaded and mahogany cross-banded throughout, having concave-shaped lid retaining original brass carrying handle.

18th century Burmese black bamboo pillow box in relief with red Rakhine lacquer. Created with bamboo weaving. Decorated all-over with geometrical shapes and...

Beautiful antique 18th century French bread box made of hammered cooper richly decorated with crown, flags guarded by animals and large bourbon lily i...

An exceptional and rare Chinese mother of pearl mounted games box with four matching interior boxes containing gaming counters and dating from the 18th century. The rectangular shape...

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...

Queen Anne desk box with scalloped interior on bracket feet. Made of pine with old mahogany finish. Probably New York.

Rare and valuable ebony-plated domed case with rich gilt bronze decoration and central jasper medallion. Italian Renaissance manufacture from the early 17th century. The production...

This charming and unusual casket injects a romantic atmosphere into any interior. It has survived in impeccable condition with acceptable wear to the painted surface which signifies its age and use. It is a conversation piece, a piece of acting history, bought by Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier...

Leather trunk Spanish, 17th century Boiled Leather, wood and iron Measures: 22 x 53 x 32 cm. Provenance : - collection Metz-Noblat, Château de Clevant, France Rectangular trunk of the form and size of a small suitcase with wrought iron hinges and lock-plate. Wood, covered with leather, cut and embossed with every surface of the thick cow hide covered in interlace, zoomorphic features. The construction method is boiled leather, often referred to by its French translation cuir-bouilli: a process used to change flexible, vegetable-tanned leather into rigid, moulded objects. For shaping of the vegetable-tanned leather, heat and moisture were used, as indicated by the term boiled leather. No written medieval sources describing the production of decorated cuir bouilli objects survive, so knowledge of the process relies on the important studies of the Scottish leather historian John William Waterer. A large range of methods, materials and techniques could be used in various combinations. The vegetable-tanned leather, made supple with moisture and heat, was stuffed, shaped and nailed to the rigid wooden coffer support. The stuffing material was probably modeled beeswax or stearin wax. To shape the leather, to create its topography, « Cushions » were made by lacing a thread through an awl hole and attaching the flexible leather and stuffing to the rigid wooden support on the bottom. Then the decoration was done: lines were incised through the upper layer of the leather (epidermis) with different thicknesses of knives or needles. Contours were created with deep v-shaped cuts, decoration with thin incision and final details with a needle point. For the incision and pouncing stage, the leather was probably kept heated and moistened for suppleness. Once dry, the leather would be hard and rigid. the saturated leather is worked over a form, possibly even damp sand, with the pattern shaped using bone or wooden tools. Compare to metal, leather was lighter and it offered protection from cuts and punctures. Cuir bouilli objects were produced by specialist leather workers and needed skillful craftsmanship. The surface is filled with roundels shaped foliages enclosing animals, lions and peacocks. The foliate arabesques creating a vegetal connection tweet the animals create the impression of a lush verdant space . The vegetal pattern here employed in combination with geometrical pattern came from the pre-islamic artistic traditions of the Byzantine and Sasanian empires. An aspect of Islamic geometry Is the basic symmetrical repetition and mirroring of the shapes that create a sense of harmony. The decoration of this truck is inspired by the islamic « arabesque » a form of vegetal ornament composed of spirals, intertwining plants and abstract curvilinear motifs. An arabesque character is given to the birds of the decorations through extreme stylisation. This arabesque maintained the classical tradition of median symmetry, freedom in Detail and heterogeneity of ornament. The presence of the peacocks is a paradisiacal allusion: in popular Islamic literature they were among the original inhabitants of the garden of Paradise expelled with Adam and Eve. Peacock as a decorative motif may have originated in the West, despite their eastern provenance. There was an ancient belief that the flesh and feathers of peacock do not decay. This led to the peacock becoming a christian symbol for Christ’s resurrection. Renowned for their decorative wall hangings, seventeenth-century Spanish leatherworkers also produced utilitarian objects, such as this trunk. A similar trunk is on display at the Metropolitan museum of art ( 09.158.1). Related literature : Davies L. 2006. Cuir bouilli. Conservation of leather and related materials, 94-102, Oxford: elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann Grabar, Oleg. The Mediation of Ornament. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1992 Gabriela Germana Roquez, "El mueble en el Peru en el siglo XVIII...

A fine late 17th-century olive oyster 'Lace Box' of small proportions, circa 1680-1690, England. The cross-grain moulded and holly banded top is finely veneered in hand-cut veneers ...

A very rare and fine George III Tea Caddy made in London in 1787 by Hester Bateman. The Tea Caddy is modelled in a known design from the Hester Bateman workshops. This fine example...

The chest presented here consists of interlocking solid wood base, but the structure is strengthened by two iron bands running across its four faces at the back, top, bottom, and fro...

A ruyi-shaped Shakudo-style erotic tobacco or snuff box, relief-decorated with silvered applied figures Possibly Jakarta (Batavia), first half 18th century Measures: H. 2.2 x L. 12.1 x W. 8 cm This box is very much in the Dutch taste, for the illustration is after a print with a legend reading “L’oiseau sans cage. Prenez, belle, mon oiseau. C’est le plus doux présent que je puisse vous faire. Pour les autres oiseaux, la cage d’ordinaire est une espèce de tombeau. Mais le mien semble prendre une nouvelle vie, Lorsqu’il sera dans la cage de mon aimable Silvie.” The erotic message is as clear as can be. In Dutch culture the verb ‘vogelen’ (catching a bird) is another word for having sex and a bird escaping from his cage indicates loss of chastity. The lady with the bare breasts, while making the sign of sealed lips to the lady behind her, who is pointing towards heaven, seems to be caressing the bird held in the sleeping man’s groin. 17th century Dutch pictures...

18th century Dutch brass tobacco box with hinged lid engraved with five circular medallions containing the busts of male noblemen figures with inscriptions and dates, the most recent...

Early 18th century George I Japanned Chinoiserie dome-topped box, Circa 1715-1725. England or France. A rare survivor from the first quarter of the ...

Hallmarked in London in 1768 by Henry Bailey, this stunning pair of George III period, Antique Sterling Silver Tea Caddies, feature Rococo chasing throughout, vacant cartouches, and ...

A large French 16th Century Beech wood & leather chest, with iron flowerhead and domed stud work to front top and sides. Original hasp and lockplate, the interior of the box with lat...

German enamel box, circa 1750.

A Portuguese or Cuban silver mounted mahogany knife box from the 18th century. Box with a worn painted inscription to the backside dated 1786.

A Very Rare George III Silver Mounted Red Morrocan Leather Penner Made circa 1790. The Penner has a red Morrocan leather case with silver upper bands and a vacant oval cartouche The...

This incredible piece is made of silver embossed in the form of floral ornaments. These pieces belonged to prominent members of the nobility. In addition to their shape and possible...

Very fine 18th century Indian Macassar Ebony traveling writing box with Tutenag metal hardware, the vividly grained case with rare alloy trim, the rectangular form opening to make a ...

Hallmarked in London in 1797 by Robert Sharp, this rare and exceptional quality, George III, antique sterling silver tea caddy set, comprises two oval tea caddies and a sugar caddy...

A fine Indonesian Ambonya burl, ebony and teak casket with silver mounts Jakarta (Batavia), circa 1706 (year letter W (1705-1710), marked DV, probably Dirck Vooght The outer ri...

This important German porcelain snuff box exhibits delightful artistry and craftsmanship. Hand painted classical tableau celebrating the e...

A Fine and Rare Late 18th Century George III Satinwood Octagonal Box, C.1790. The kingwood crossbanded sectional top with ebony and box stringing is finely laid around a central in...

This is a stunning example of original 18th century Swedish folk art in the form of a marriage box. The patina and age are stunning and make this a very characterful decorative piece...

Moorish incense burner from Spain, dated to 10th-12th century Spanish, 10th-12th century Measures: Burner height 20cm, width 12cm, depth 12cm Box height 23cm, width 21cm, depth 18...

19th century French red aventurine top silver box.

An exceptionally fine & rare George III Fourteen sided Tea Caddy made in London in 1789 by James Young This wonderful Tea Caddy is modelled in a very rare fourteen sided form. Both ...

A museum-grade mid-17th century Dutch silver marriage casket or knottekistje, circa 1660. Raised on solid silver bun feet the miniature casket is profusely engraved to all faces depicting a courting couple and architecture entwined in scrolling foliage. The reverse of the casket depicts the last supper, however, if you look closely, you can see a boy stealing food or wine from underneath! Possibly, this is the courting gentleman showing that he had a sense of humour. The scratch lined moulded top is surmounted with an intricate handle (once gilt) and floral patera to the centre. There are two inscriptions each within a cartouche 'In Lÿfde Beltact het al' and 'Getrouw tot in den doot' which loosely translates to 'faithful until the death' and 'love is everything'. Wedding caskets...

Spanish Colonial inlaid bone and faux tortoiseshell domed top box. Original hammered iron hinges. Circa 1680-1740. Excellent condition and very rare.

Louis XV gold & lacquer snuff box Circa Paris, France 1760/1761 With the Charge and Decharge Marks of Eloy Brichard 1756 - 1762 Circular Gold-lined bo...

This is an elegant lacquered and shaped wooden box, with fine and polychrome flowers decoration on yellow background. In the center of the lid a bouquet of flowers has been painted and on the top of this one, rests a little bird with a long tail framed by a flowery ramage and crossed by a red ribbon. This brighting piece hails from the Mid-18th Century in Venezia and masterfully shows the lacquered Venetian style. This Venetian lacquered box is a precious jewelry case and it has an intense beauty that could matches with the elegance of every timeless home. One of the distinctive characteristics of Venetian Baroque and Rococo furniture and decorative objects is the skilful use of lacquers. Lacquer is a natural resin that was very rare in the past, imported from the East and used to create smooth and colored surfaces on furniture, ready to be finely decorated with refined floral designs or exotic animals. Venetian artisans became masters in lacquer processing which required time and patience because it was made with many steps. The Venetian style deeply influenced furniture design throughout Europe, but none reached the Venetian level in terms of beauty. The skillful use of lacquer and carvings defined Venice's unique style during the Rococo period, its Golden Age. The iron little key is not working. The piece is in very good state of maintenance and it is guaranteed original in every parts. The surface was only cleaned not restored and it is original. The wooden yellow lacquered box...

A fine 17th century and later floral marquetry box with hinged lid.  

An extremely rare, highly desirable, and sought-after model mid-18th century George III period tea caddy. Original brass-work. English, circa 1750. Why we like it Its distinctive a...

A rare and important Queen Anne-George I japanned chinoiserie domed topped box depicting scenes of falconry, circa 1710-1720. England Falconry is ...

An European Chinese export "Canton enamel" oval box, 18th century Qianlong, (1736-1795) An enamel box with floral decor made for the export for Euro...

This extremely rare tea-chest is a fine example of the mid-18th century fashion for brass-inlaid furniture and boxes, and undoubtedly originates from the circle of outstanding crafts...