Chinese Pillow-Form Basketry Box / Case

A pillow with a lock, and nothing soft about it.

Craftsmen of Shanxi Province, China, made this pillow-form box in rattan and wood in the early 20th century. Woven cases like this were commonly made to store personal items, and the pillow shape also links to traditional Chinese headrests. This one has a domed, plump lid with a band of woven geometric key pattern, over a lower body with vertical reddish-brown slats. Two metal clasps sit at the front. The surface has dried to a dark mahogany with a faint sheen.

About eleven by twenty-seven by seventeen inches. A good coffee-table object that guards its contents.