Sewing Box

This twelve-compartment box was crafted with a variety of elegant materials. The tortoiseshell overlay box contains an ivory silk lining and trim. The tools are carved mother-of-pearl, and bear the enamel pansy motif of the Palais Royal.

In the early 18th century, European workboxes were decorative and elaborate objects with mother-of-pearl, ivory, gold or brass fittings. Boxes had lift-out trays lined with velvet or satin with receptacles formed for specific tools, such as thimbles, scissors, and bodkins.
Fancy boxes, such as this, were for the “genteel” class who did needlework as a social activity. Many thimbles and sewing tools were made of precious metals, and were given as gifts. Societal rules dictated young men could not give their sweethearts gifts of personal adornment, such as clothing or jewelry. Instead, sewing tools in addition to flowers, books, and candies, were acceptable gifts.
In the 18th century, Louis d’Orleans rebuilt a wing of the royal palace as an arcade of shops and restaurants, and renamed the building from Palais Cardinal to Palais Royal. Palais Royal shop artisans of the 1780s sold the best quality products, and the area became the place to be seen. The most prestigious of the Palais Royal sewing boxes are those with an enamel pansy motif on the tools. The pansy is French “pensee,” meaning “think of me.”