Produced in a factory in the French city of Limoges, a Limoges box is a hand crafted and painted box, manufactured from hard paste porcelain. They have been made since the early 1700s and are today considered to be highly collectible, although originally only French nobility could afford to buy the boxes. They were originally designed as snuff boxes, although over the centuries have been used to keep jewelry in, or perhaps store a baby’s first tooth. One of the appeals of the beautiful boxes is that they come in a wide variety of shapes and designs, making collecting them highly appealing. Many collectors like to specialize, and focus on boxes that are decorated with a specific theme, such as animals, flowers or childhood. Whether you use them or simply display them, it’s easy to see why these beautifully hand crafted boxes are so popular.