Sewing Box

This sewing box with accessories was made in China for the export market. Inlaid mother-of-pearl in designs of flowers and foliage decorates the top, sides and interior of the lacquer box. The vivid pink, purple and green of the inlay inside the lid give a sense of the overall coloring of the object when new. The top tray of the box is fitted with velvet pin cushions and lined compartments shaped to house sewing tools like scissors, needles, picks, thimbles and tweezers. The accessories include a velvet needle book with a mother-of-pearl spine, a needle with two eyes for thread and ribbon, a mother-of-pearl handle and an ivory and brass needle case, and five large and three small engraved petal-shaped mother-of-pearl spools. Two sets of lids in the top tray and the entire top tray of the sewing box can be removed to reveal compartments for storing small articles and sewing projects.