Black Lacquer Presentation Snack Box

To the delight of the recipients, this Qing-dynasty box would have been presented as a gift to an honored friend, filled with popular 18th-century Chinese snacks such as roasted melon seeds, dried fruit, and soybeans toasted with cinnamon, fennel, and other spices. Constructed of pine, this square box is coated in a layer of black lacquer that has gently faded with the passage of time. Today, it can stand alone as a sculptural object or fit seamlessly into the home as a tasteful storage solution.