Pennsylvania Spice Box

Inspired by a Steve Latta design. Fitted with banks of small drawers and two hidden compartments, this piece features a dovetailed case with an inlaid frame-and-panel door. The box is small enough to fit comfortably atop a dresser or sideboard, but don’t let the small size fool you. This piece contains an absolute wealth of craftsmanship.

Spice boxes were considered a luxury piece, typically observed in parlors of affluent homes. These dovetailed casework items were made from walnut, curly maple, cherry or mahogany exteriors. While tulip poplar or oak were used for concealed areas, inlay patterns were made from red cedar and locust. Originally utilized to store high commodity spices, spice boxes became prevalent in England during the early seventeenth and mid-eighteenth centuries. 

   As spices were imported into the ports of Philadelphia on English ships, spice boxes became popular in the Colonies during the William and Mary furniture style period from 1690-1730, and overlapped the Queen Anne period from 1720-1765, then into the Chippendale time frame of 1755-1790.  It is also worth noting that the oldest boxes were utilized not only to keep cooking spices, but also for spices converted to usable scents, fragrances and medicinal items. 

  Through the Delaware Valley to Chester County, Pennsylvania became a maker's haven due to plentiful walnut wood for cabinetmakers spice box creativity, and thus the Pennsylvania Spice Box was named. As the value of spices declined in price due to widespread availability, spice boxes became useful to retain jewelry, spectacles, buckles, buttons, lace, combs, and other valuables. 

   Craftsman often added their artisan aesthetic designs and hidden compartments to spice boxes to showcase selling features for lowboy, highboy, and secretary handcrafted furniture. It was much easier to travel and show these smaller boxes for larger commissioned pieces as different designs were a collaboration between the craftsman and the client.