Wooden Cigar Chest
These wooden cigar chests range from modest Edwardian oak boxes to elaborate Victorian cabinets designed to keep fine tobacco in proper condition.
Wooden Cigar Chest
A wooden cigar chest is a desktop container, humidor or cabinet built to store and protect cigars. When searching for a wooden cigar chest, a buyer encounters pieces originating from the nineteenth century through to the mid twentieth century.
The selections available here span several distinct forms including smokers boxes, table cabinets with drawers, and novelty items like railway coal wagon humidors. Oak and burr walnut dominate the pieces, often fitted with internal compartments or humidification elements.
Most examples date from the Victorian and Edwardian eras, reflecting a period when gentleman's smoking accessories received considerable craftsmanship. Buyers find everything from simple brass bound oak boxes to large multi drawer cabinets finished in fine veneers.
How they were made
Construction relies heavily on dense timbers such as oak, burr walnut, burr elm and satinwood, selected for stability and visual grain pattern. Cabinetmakers utilised solid woods and decorative veneers to build sturdy carcasses that protected contents from humidity changes.
Metal mounts in brass, iron and sterling silver provide structural reinforcement and secure closures through locks and hinges. Glass panels and silver details appear on specific deluxe models, while tambour doors and fitted drawers demonstrate advanced woodworking techniques.
Listings feature periods from the nineteenth century through to the 1940s, with oak and burr walnut as the predominant materials.
What varies in quality
Quality in these chests rests upon the selection of timber veneers, such as richly figured burr walnut or golden oak, and the precision of the joinery. Superior examples exhibit tightly fitted drawers, robust locking mechanisms and substantial metal mounts.
The interior configuration also dictates distinction, ranging from basic partitioned storage to complex multi drawer systems with specialised humidification fittings. Original hardware and well preserved interior linings elevate the standing of a piece considerably.
Alfred Dunhill
The Wooden Cigar Chest Glossary
- Humidor
- A specialised box or cabinet designed to maintain a constant humidity level for storing cigars. These interiors often incorporate cedar linings or humidifying devices.
- Burr Walnut
- A highly prized wood veneer showing swirling, knotty grain patterns derived from the growth excrescences of walnut trees. It creates rich decorative surfaces on nineteenth century cabinets.
- Tambour
- A type of sliding door or shutter constructed from narrow vertical strips of wood glued to a fabric backing. This allows smooth operation around curved cabinet corners.
- Smoker's Box
- A dedicated container partitioned to hold cigars, tobacco, pipes and matches. These were standard desktop accessories in Edwardian and Victorian rooms.
- Brass Bound
- Furniture or boxes reinforced at the corners and edges with solid brass strapping and corner pieces. This technique added both physical durability and visual contrast to timber cases.
Wooden Cigar Chest: Frequently Asked Questions
How do I use an antique humidor?
Antique wooden cigar chests can still function for storage, though modern humidification elements may need integration to maintain proper moisture levels for cigars.
Care should be taken not to over saturate antique wood linings, as historic timbers react poorly to excessive moisture.
What woods were used for cigar boxes?
Cabinetmakers primarily utilised oak, burr walnut, burr elm and satinwood for the exterior construction of these chests and cabinets. These hardwoods provided durability and attractive grain patterns suited to gentleman's studies.
Interior compartments frequently employed softer or aromatic woods to complement the stored tobacco.
How do I date a cigar chest?
Dating relies on stylistic clues, hardware construction, and timber types associated with periods like the Victorian, Edwardian and Regency eras. Brass mounts, lock mechanisms and dovetailing techniques change visibly across the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
Makers marks or retailer stamps occasionally stamped inside drawers offer further chronological evidence.
What is a novelty cigar box?
Novelty cigar chests are storage boxes fashioned into amusing or unusual shapes, such as railway coal wagons, popular during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. These combined functional tobacco storage with decorative whimsy for the smoking room.
Craftsmen produced them in materials like oak with iron wheels and brass details to mimic industrial machinery.