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Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

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Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes For Sale
Period: 18th Century
Period: 17th Century
Period: 15th Century and Earlier
Period: 16th Century
1690s Antique Dutch Silver Tobacco Box
By Jan Breda
Located in Jesmond, Newcastle Upon Tyne
A magnificent, exceptional, fine and impressive, rare antique 17th century Dutch silver tobacco box; an addition to our smoking related silverware collection. This exceptional antique Dutch silver tobacco box has an oval rounded form. The underside of this impressive Dutch tobacco box is embellished with exceptional chased decorated scene depicting a lady draped across soft furnishings and accompanied by a bearded male, with putto* observing this act amidst a stately garden backdrop; this scene can be perceived to be connected to artistic works portraying Venus, Vulcan and Cupid. The sides of this exceptional box are encompassed with chased decorated grotesque mask and scrolling leaf decoration, accented with floral motifs, all on a matte background. This silver tobacco box retains the original hinged cover embellished with further chased decoration depicting a male and female character eating and...
Category

17th Century Dutch Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Silver

English 18th Century Gold-Mounted Agate Snuff-Box
Located in Paris, FR
Agate box or snuff-box in of circular form with gently bombé sides, the gold mounted lid is chased with scrollwork. Probably Georges II period. Unmarked gold...
Category

1750s English George II Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Agate, Gold

18th Century English Agate Snuff Box
Located in New Orleans, LA
Trimmed in elegant yellow gold is this polished English agate snuff box. Distinguished by the dynamic patterning of the agate, the exquisite vessel i...
Category

18th Century English Other Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Agate, Gold

Austria Mid-18th Century Lacquered Wood Case
Located in Brescia, IT
This fine wood lacquered wood case is painted both on the sides: there is the elegant portrait of a pretty woman on one side and on the other side, a natura...
Category

Mid-18th Century Austrian Neoclassical Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Lacquer, Wood, Fabric

Antique South Staffordshire or Battersea Enamel Table Snuff Box, 18th Century
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A fine antique English South Staffordshire or Battersea enamel table snuff box. With a pink ground and white enamel latticework decoration thro...
Category

18th Century English George III Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Enamel

Scottish Horn Snuff Mull
Located in Essex, MA
Unusually large, inlaid with crystal, amber and silver. Engraved with thistles, inside cover carved 1741, Wilm. Ruthven, WH. Provenance; Fountain Walker collection.
Category

1740s Scottish George II Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Other

Antique English Battersea South Staffordshire Enamel Table Snuff Box
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A fine and rare antique 18th century South Staffordshire or Battersea enamel table snuff box. The lid has a scene of two noble, young couples in...
Category

18th Century English George III Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Enamel

18th Century French Walnut Wooden Snuffbox, "Le Patre"
Located in Delft, NL
18th Century French Walnut Wooden Snuffbox, "Le Patre" French Walnut Wooden Snuffbox Titled "Le Patre" Walnut wooden box with a scene of a landscape Beautiful detailed cut scenery o...
Category

Late 18th Century French Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Walnut

Late 18th Century Enamelled and Gilt Metal Circular Table Snuff Box
Located in Firenze, IT
SHIPPING POLICY: No additional costs will be added to this order. Shipping costs will be totally covered by the seller (customs duties included). The cover set with an enamel panel...
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1790s English Georgian Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Enamel

Louis XV French Gold Snuffbox by Germain Chayé
Located in New Orleans, LA
This luxurious Louis XV-period gold snuffbox was crafted by master French goldsmith Germain Chayé. Formed of 18-karat yellow gold, this exceptional box d...
Category

18th Century French Louis XV Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Gold

Antique Round 18th Century English Battersea Bilston Pink Enamel Table Snuff Box
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A fine antique English Battersea Bilston table snuff box. A very rare round form! With a pink ground, floral spray decoration, and gilt bronze mou...
Category

18th Century English George III Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Enamel

Antique French or German Porcelain Snuff Box with Hand-Painted Military Scenes
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A fine antique French or German porcelain snuff box. Dating to the 18th (or possibly early 19th) century. Decorated throughout with...
Category

18th Century German George III Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Porcelain

Antique Figural Bird Battersea or Staffordshire Enamel Bonbonniere / Snuff Box
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A good antique figural bird form Battersea or South Staffordshire enamel bonbonniere. The lid has bronze mount and a bird on a branch decoration....
Category

18th Century English George III Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Copper, Enamel

Large Gold Candy Box 18th Century
Located in Paris, FR
Large and circular box featuring two shades of gold. The removable lid is embellished with detailed, concentric lines and with a central medallion representing a dove flying over a f...
Category

1750s French Louis XV Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Gold

Antique Figural Bird Battersea or Staffordshire Enamel Bonbonniere / Snuff Box
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A wonderful, antique figural bird form Battersea or South Staffordshire enamel bonbonniere. The lid is decorated with a bird on a branch in a lan...
Category

18th Century English George III Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Copper, Enamel

18th Century Snuff Box With Secret Erotic Motive
Located in Copenhagen, K
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.
Category

Late 18th Century French Empire Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Wood, Paper

Admiral Lord Nelson's Tortoiseshell Snuff Box with Certificate of Authenticity
Located in Jersey, GB
- A hugely rare and intimate piece of British history: Admiral Horatio Lord Nelson's snuff box - Admiral Horatio Lord Nelson (1758–1805) is one of the most celebrated figures in British history, best remembered for his heroic efforts during the Napoleonic wars. Nelson's career as a naval officer saw him lead the British fleet to several victories, during which he suffered injuries, including the loss of his right arm and the sight in his right eye. His most famous victory came in October 1805 at the Battle of Trafalgar, in which the Royal Navy decimated the combined fleets of the French and Spanish navies. Prior to the battle, Nelson sent out the famous message "England expects that every man will do his duty". Tragically, he was shot by a French sniper and died on board his ship the HMS Victory mid battle. His body was returned to England where he was granted a state funeral, and numerous monuments were erected in his honor, including Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square, London. This tortoiseshell composition snuff box was originally owned by Lord Nelson, and features a miniature watercolor scene of the Amalfi coast on the top. The box was gifted by Nelson to his personal secretary George Unwin, during a dinner party in Sicily in late 1798 or early 1799 which was also attended by Nelson's mistress, Emma, Lady Hamilton. Nelson had first met Hamilton in 1793 and the pair were reunited in 1798 following the Battle of the Nile. Having been severely injured, Nelson recuperated in Naples, during which time he was nursed back to health by Lady Emma and her elderly husband, Sir William Hamilton. It was during this period that Nelson and Hamilton began their famous love affair, which lasted until Nelson's death at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. It seems highly possible that Nelson gave this gift to Unwin as a show of generosity, in an attempt to impress his mistress over dinner. The snuff box is offered along with a manuscript letter by Unwin's son, George, which reads in full: "My Father had either lost his own snuff box on going ashore or in some shop in Palermo and upon mentioning the circumstances at Lady Hamilton’s table where Lord Nelson was one of the party his Lordship...
Category

Late 18th Century European Rococo Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Tortoise Shell

18th Century Walnut Wooden Snuffbox
Located in Delft, NL
18th Century French walnut wooden snuffbox French walnut wooden snuffbox Beautiful detailed cut scenery, celebrating people The text will be probably "rejouissance mamand" (festiv...
Category

Late 18th Century French Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Walnut

Antique 18th Century Mennecy Figural Mouse Snuff or Patch Box
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A rare figural porcelain snuff box in the form of a mouse attributed to Mennecy porcelain. Having a porcelain mounted lid with wonderfully hand-...
Category

18th Century French Rococo Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Porcelain

Louis XV Gold-Mounted Lacquer Snuff Box
Located in Spencertown, NY
The cover and base inset with gouache miniatures of the front and back of a chateau, signed Andre inv. with tortoiseshell lined interior maker's mark JG cross between, Paris, 1762-1768.
Category

Mid-18th Century French Louis XV Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Gold

Rare English George III pewter canister with domed lid, 1780-1810
Located in Kenilworth, IL
A rare George III pewter tea/tobacco canister. The beaded lip is repeated in ring moldings on the domed lid which terminates in an acorn finial. The canted base of the canister repea...
Category

Late 18th Century English George III Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Pewter

Antique Sterling Silver Queen Anne Tobacco Box 1711 18th Century
Located in London, GB
A beautiful antique Queen Anne solid silver tobacco box with a classic oval form. The fitted lid has an intricate engraved armorial, and the interior is gilded. Made in London, En...
Category

Early 18th Century English Queen Anne Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Sterling Silver

Louis XVI Candy Box in Gold, Circa 1782
Located in Paris, FR
Candy box in green varnish and gold frame. The inside of the box is fully lined with tortoiseshell. The removable cover presents a decoration of guilloché patterns in concentric circ...
Category

1780s French Antique Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

Materials

Gold

Antique Snuffboxes and Tobacco Boxes

Snuff, made of ground tobacco, was especially popular with Europeans in the 1600s. The ornate boxes to keep the powder dry became highly decorative by the 18th century. It was considered a must-have item, particularly for nobility. Today antique snuffboxes and tobacco boxes — as well as other vintage tobacco accessories — are collectibles and charming pieces of decor for any display case or to elevate your bookshelves.

The most important feature of a snuffbox was that it was airtight. The box protected the snuff from oxygen. Another crucial component was the flat lid.

Snuffboxes could be small enough to fit into a pocket or a larger container for communal use at the table. They also came in different shapes. Porcelain containers were prevalent and often designed to look like trunks. Others were oval or square. Boxes made with cowrie shells were rare and more expensive.

Snuffboxes were usually crafted from silver, gold, horn or tortoiseshell. Some of the most prestigious snuffboxes were French tabatières made of gold and sometimes glass. They could be adorned with amethysts, sapphires and diamonds and enameled, engraved or chased.

Sheffield, England, was known for its silver snuffboxes in the late 18th century as its silver-plating technologies perfected these containers. By the early 19th century, the silver industry in Birmingham, England, was producing elegant snuffboxes with images of abbeys and castles on the sides and top.

Another type of tobacco box was the snuff mull or mill. It was made out of horn or an entire ram’s head and topped with a metal lid, frequently featuring engravings and decorative hinges. These were fashionable in Scotland during the 19th century. The origin of its name is unclear.

On 1stDibs, find a plentiful range of antique snuffboxes and tobacco boxes to complement any home decor or furniture style. You can browse the collection by style, which includes Victorian, Georgian and Art Deco, or by material to find pieces in silver and gold.

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