Parcel-gilt Shell-shaped Silver Box

Tang dynasty, 7th - 8th century

This finely chased parcel-gilt silver shell-shaped box was intended as a cosmetic box, to hold pigments or powder. A box such as this would have been used by a member of the Tang dynasty elite or perhaps given as a gift. An example, together with a small mirror, was found in the tomb of a Tang noblewoman dating to 731AD, now in the collection of the Shaanxi Archaeological Institute.