Why are so many listed as snuff boxes?

The heading gathers several kinds of small lidded box. Snuff wording dominates, appearing in 46 of 121 titles against 16 that say patch. Trinket, powder, vinaigrette and bonbonniere boxes sit under the same label, so the group is wider than the name suggests.

What period do these boxes come from?

The long 18th and 19th centuries. Dealers' dating gives 19th Century 31 times, 18th Century 19 and Georgian 16, with smaller runs of Victorian, Edwardian, 1900s, 1920s and 1930s entries. Where a clean year is recorded, the field spans 1800 to 1950. Only 28 of the 121 listings carry one.

Which materials turn up in this category?

Enamel on copper leads, then silver and silver-gilt, then gold, including 18ct and 15ct and vari-coloured work. Turned wood covers boxwood, rosewood and laburnum. The snuff boxes bring in tortoiseshell, horn, coquilla nut, abalone shell, papier-mache, burr walnut, ebony and pressed maple. Coquilla nut, birch, Bakelite and damascene each appear once.

How many come to market each year?

Around fourteen a year on Sellingantiques, from a category that fifty-five dealers have listed in. That works out at most dealers handling one and not returning to them.

Are pill boxes from outside Britain listed?

British pieces dominate, and French is the commonest non-British origin, in 8 titles. Beyond that the archive holds single examples: a Chinese Beijing enamel snuff box, a Chinese coromandel and ivory patch box, a Japanese cloisonne box and a Swedish carved oak box, plus two Russian silver-gilt enamel boxes.

What are pill rounders and silverers?

Apothecary's tools rather than containers. A pill rounder is a boxwood implement for rolling out and forming hand-made pills; a silverer is a small turned vessel in which pills were coated with silver leaf. They make up a small corner of the group, almost entirely in the archive. One 19th-century boxwood container held ten smaller containers inside it.

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Antique Pill Boxes

72 items · page 2 of 5

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Very small lidded boxes made to be carried in a pocket or reticule, for pills, cosmetic face patches or snuff.

18th century

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Late 18th Century Enamel Box

From Beech and Springs Antiques

£185

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

19th century

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Early 19th Century French Papier Mache Snuff Box Hunting La Chasse

From Queens Antiques and Collectables

£125

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

A Superb Snuff Box Made from Abalone Shell

19th century

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A Superb Snuff Box Made from Abalone Shell

From Gerard Robinson Fine Art and Antiques

£225

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

19th century

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An Antique Tunbridge Ware Snuff Box

From Opus Antiques

£115

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

19th century

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19th Century Ebony Engine Turned Snuff Box

From Robert Belcher Antiques

£395

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

Lovely Antique Victorian Oval Agate and Gilt Brass Box – Circa 1890

19th century

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Lovely Antique Victorian Oval Agate and Gilt Brass Box – Circa 1890

From Kingsdown Antiques

£135

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

Antique Early Treen 19thc Laburnum Engine Turned Decorated Snuff Box. Scottish C1820-40.

19th century

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Antique Early Treen 19thc Laburnum Engine Turned Decorated Snuff Box. Scottish C1820-40.

From Mark Seabrook Antiques

£175

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

18th century

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18th Century South Staffordshire Snuff Box

From Treaders Collectables

£1,000

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

18th century

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18th Century South Staffordshire Snuff Box - 'Musicians in Parkland'

From Treaders Collectables

£2,000

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

18th century

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18th Century Chinese Beijing Enamel Snuff Box

From Treaders Collectables

£7,500

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

The rarest origins on Sellingantiques include a Beijing enamel snuff box, a Japanese cloisonne box and a Swedish carved oak box. French is the commonest non-British origin.

18th century

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18th Century Bilston Enamel Rectangular Patch / Snuff Box Circa 1780

From Treaders Collectables

£800

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

19th century

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A Lovely Mid 19th Century Tortoiseshell Snuff Box

From Jeff Sims Antiques

£125

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

18th century

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18th Century Bilston Enamel Patch Box / Bonbonniere Circa 1780

From Treaders Collectables

£1,200

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

18th century

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18th Century Bilston Enamel Rectangular Patch / Snuff Box Circa 1775

From Treaders Collectables

£1,000

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

18th century

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18th Century Walnut Oval Table Snuff Box

From Walton House Antiques

£365

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

Exquisite Georgian Bilston Enamel Patch Box, Circa 1780

18th century

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Exquisite Georgian Bilston Enamel Patch Box, Circa 1780

From Julie Cartwright Antiques

£225

3+ MONTHS AGO

boxes

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Antique Pill Boxes

Late 18th Century Enamel Box

Early 19th Century French Papier Mache Snuff Box Hunting La Chasse

A Superb Snuff Box Made from Abalone Shell

An Antique Tunbridge Ware Snuff Box

19th Century Ebony Engine Turned Snuff Box

Lovely Antique Victorian Oval Agate and Gilt Brass Box – Circa 1890

Antique Early Treen 19thc Laburnum Engine Turned Decorated Snuff Box. Scottish C1820-40.

18th Century South Staffordshire Snuff Box

18th Century South Staffordshire Snuff Box - 'Musicians in Parkland'

18th Century Chinese Beijing Enamel Snuff Box

18th Century Bilston Enamel Rectangular Patch / Snuff Box Circa 1780

A Lovely Mid 19th Century Tortoiseshell Snuff Box

18th Century Bilston Enamel Patch Box / Bonbonniere Circa 1780

18th Century Bilston Enamel Rectangular Patch / Snuff Box Circa 1775

18th Century Walnut Oval Table Snuff Box

Exquisite Georgian Bilston Enamel Patch Box, Circa 1780

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