While a box may be a purely functional device, there is nothign to prevent it also from being decorative or even artistic. Several examples of boxes that have evolved byond function to add a decorative dimension are described.

Work box

Of the boxes which possess some attraction beyond their immediate purpose the feminine work-box is the most common. It is usually fitted with a tray divided into many small compartments, for needles, reels of silk and cotton and other necessaries of stitchery. The date of its introduction is in considerable doubt, but 17th-century examples have come down to us, with covers of silk, stitched with beads and adorned with embroidery. In the 18th century no lady was without her work-box, and, especially in the second half of that period, much taste and elaborate pains were expended upon the case, which was often exceedingly dainty and elegant. These boxes are ordinarily portable, but sometimes form the top of a table. The word needle has several meanings: // Sewing Needles used for sewing In sewing, a needle is a long, slender, object with a pointed tip, usually made of metal. ... Silk weaver Silk is a natural protein fiber that can be woven into textiles. ... Cotton ready for harvest. ... Turn of the century sewing in Detroit, Michigan An old sewing machine Sewing is an ancient craft involving the stitching of cloth, leather, animal skins, furs, or other materials, using needle and thread. ... Gold Embroidery Cross-stitch embroidery, Hungary, mid-20th century Embroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with designs stitched in strands of thread or yarn using a needle. ...

Snuff box

But it is as a receptacle for snuff that the box has taken its most distinguished and artistic forms in Western culture. The snuff-box, which is now little more than a charming relic of a disagreeable practice, was throughout the larger part of the 18th century the indispensable companion of every man of birth and breeding. It long survived his sword, and was in frequent use until nearly the middle of the 19th century. Species Nicotiana acuminata Nicotiana alata Nicotiana attenuata Nicotiana benthamiana Nicotiana clevelandii Nicotiana excelsior Nicotiana forgetiana Nicotiana glauca Nicotiana glutinosa Nicotiana langsdorffii Nicotiana longiflora Nicotiana obtusifolia Nicotiana paniculata Nicotiana plumbagifolia Nicotiana quadrivalvis Nicotiana repanda Nicotiana rustica Nicotianasuaveolens Nicotiana sylvestris Nicotiana tabacum Nicotiana tomentosa Ref: ITIS 30562 as of August 26, 2005... Swiss longsword, 15th or 16th century Sword (from Old English sweord, cognate to Old High German Schwert, literally wounding tool from a Proto-Indo-European root *swer- to wound, to hurt) is a term for a long edged weapon, fundamentally consisting of a blade, usually with two edges for striking...

The jeweller, the enameller and the artist bestowed infinite pains upon what was quite as often a delicate bijou as a piece of utility; fops and great personages possessed numbers of snuff-boxes, rich and more ordinary, their selection being regulated by their dress and by the relative splendour of the occasion. From the cheapest wood that was suitable at one time - potato-pulp was extensively used - to a frame of gold encased with diamonds, a great variety of materials was employed. Tortoise-shell was a favorite, and owing to its limpid lustre it was exceedingly effective. Mother-of-pearl was also used, together with silver, in its natural state or gilded. Costly gold boxes were often enriched with enamels or set with diamonds or other precious stones, and sometimes the lid was adorned with a portrait, a classical vignette, or a tiny portrait miniature, often some choice work by an old master. Jewellery (spelled jewelry in American English) consists of ornamental devices worn by persons, typically made with gems and precious metals. ... In a discussion of art technology, enamel (or vitreous enamel, or porcelain enamel in American English) is the colorful result of fusion of powdered glass to a substrate through the process of firing, usually between 750 and 850 degrees Celsius. ... Bijou Phillips, born on 1 April 1980 in Greenwich, Connecticut, is the daughter of John Phillips, of The Mamas and the Papas, and Genevieve Waite, a South African model. ... FOP (Formatting Objects Processor) is an XSL-FO processor written in Java, which provides the feature to convert XSL-FO files to PDF or direct-printable-files. ... Binomial name Solanum tuberosum L. The potato (Solanum tuberosum) is a perennial plant of the Solanaceae, or nightshade, family, commonly grown for its starchy tuber. ... For other uses, including the shape ◊, see Diamond (disambiguation). ... Tortoiseshell can refer to: a Tortoiseshell cat a pattern used in clothing and jewellery the Small Tortoiseshell, a butterfly the Hawksbill turtle Tortoiseshell, a song by The Boo Radleys which appeared on their EP Every Heaven This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise... A piece of nacre Nacre, also known as mother of pearl, is an organic mixture of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) in the form of platy crystals of aragonite and conchiolin (a scleroprotein). ... General Name, Symbol, Number silver, Ag, 47 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11, 5, d Appearance lustrous white metal Atomic mass 107. ... General Name, Symbol, Number gold, Au, 79 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11, 6, d Appearance metallic yellow Atomic mass 196. ... It has been suggested that Portrait painting be merged into this article or section. ... The word vignette has several meanings, depending on the context. ... Some links to this page should perhaps link to miniature (illuminated manuscript). ... An Old Master (or old master) is one of the great European painters who lived 1500 through 1800, or a painting by one of these painters. ...

After snuff-taking had ceased to be general it lingered for some time among diplomats, either because as Talleyrand explained they found a ceremonious pinch to be a useful aid to reflection in a business interview, or because monarchs retained the habit of bestowing snuff-boxes upon ambassadors and other intermediaries, who could not well be honored in any other way. It is, indeed, to the cessation of the habit of snuff-taking that we may trace much of modern lavishness in the distribution of decorations. To be invited to take a pinch from a monarchs snuff-box was a distinction almost equivalent to having one's ear pulled by Napoleon. At the coronation of George IV of England, Messrs. Rundell and Bridge, the court jewellers, were paid £ 8205 for snuff-boxes for foreign ministers. This page is about negotiations; for the board game, see Diplomacy (game). ... Charles Maurice de Talleyrand Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (February 2, 1754 - May 17, 1838) was a French diplomat. ... An ambassador, rarely embassador, is a diplomatic official accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization, to serve as the official representative of his or her own country. ... Napoleon I Bonaparte, Emperor of the French, King of Italy (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821) was a general of the French Revolution; the ruler of France as First Consul (Premier Consul) of the French Republic from 11 November 1799 to 18 May 1804; then Emperor of the French (Empereur... George IV (George Augustus Frederick) (12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was king of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death. ...

Now that the snuffbox is no longer used it is collected by wealthy amateurs or deposited in museums, and especially artistic examples command large sums. George, duke of Cambridge (1819-1904), possessed an important collection; a Louis XV. gold box was sold by auction after his death for £ 2000. The National Gallery in London, a famous museum. ... His Royal Highness Prince George, Duke of Cambridge (26 March 1819 - 17 March 1904), was a member of the British Royal Family and army officer who served as commander-in-chief of the British Army from 1856 to 1895. ...