Bandbox
PeriodCirca 1830 - 1840
Place MadeNew York or Philadelphia, U.S.A.
MediumPasteboard, wallpaper
Dimensions5 × 9.75 × 7.63 in. (12.7 × 24.8 × 19.4 cm)
ClassificationsStorage & Display Accessories
Credit LineGift of Miss Laura Conover in memory of her mother Elia R. Conover, 1940
Object number1419
DescriptionOvoid shaped bandbox with rounded corners, constructed of pasteboard covered with block printed wallpaper in shades of brilliant blue, dark green, white, and pale pink. Paper includes birds amid floral and foliate motifs. The bandbox has a removable shallow lid, with a decorative wallpaper band glued to the rim edge. On the front of the box is glued a large rectangular paper label, printed "DOZEN RUSSIA BRISTLE FRAMES / STOCKS / C. WINSLOW, NO. 81 PEARL ST."Curatorial RemarksPractical, lightweight, and decorative, bandboxes have been used since the seventeenth century in England, when pasteboard containers were needed to store the large, lacy collars or "bands" worn by both men and women. The earliest American reference to bandboxes was in the will of Ipswich, Massachusetts resident Sarah Dillington in 1636. Bandboxes were particularly popular during the first half of the nineteenth century in America, gradually falling out of favor by the Civil War. Bandboxes could be purchased at dry goods shops and from dressmakers, milliners, and fabric stores. Many wallpaper manufacturers produced these containers as well. Most often, the boxes were covered in a wide variety of brightly-colored and designed wallpapers, often with matching or contrasting trim strips or borders. Bandboxes were used to store hats, shoes, garments, decorative hair combs, and other clothing and personal accessories. The boxes also provided bright color and decoration, perched atop wardrobes, linen presses, and high chests. Bandboxes could also be used as lightweight luggage or traveling containers.NotesThis attractive bandbox was given to the Association by Miss Laura Conover in memory of her mother Ella R. Conover in 1940.
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