snuffbox

Etymology

From snuff + box.

Why this word is great

SNUFFBOX — [Noun] A small, often ornate container designed to hold powdered tobacco for inhalation. From snuff (a preparation of pulverized tobacco) + box (a rigid receptacle), it is the pocket-sized reliquary of a once-ubiquitous vice. Unlike a "bandbox" (which cradles delicate millinery) or a "minaudière" (which carries lipstick and coins), a snuffbox is built for ritual—the crisp flick of its hinged lid, the faint musk of tobacco clinging to its velvet lining, the practiced pinch of powder between thumb and forefinger. It is the weight of polished silver in a gentleman’s palm, the clandestine exchange between diplomats in antechambers, the last relic of an age when indulgence fit neatly in one’s waistcoat pocket. Now it sits in display cases, outliving its purpose, a beautiful anachronism.

noun

  1. A small box or container to hold snuff or loose tobacco.“He held out his snuffbox of old gold, with a great amethyst in the centre of the lid.”