A cigar box is a

box A box (plural: boxes) is a container used for the storage or transportation of its contents. Most boxes have flat, parallel, rectangular sides. Boxes can be very small (like a matchbox) or very large (like a shipping box for furniture), and can ...

container for

cigar A cigar is a rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco leaves made to be smoked. Cigars are produced in a variety of sizes and shapes. Since the 20th century, almost all cigars are made of three distinct components: the filler, the binder l ...

packaging Packaging is the science, art and technology of enclosing or protecting products for distribution, storage, sale, and use. Packaging also refers to the process of designing, evaluating, and producing packages. Packaging can be described as a co ...

. Traditionally cigar boxes have been made of

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin th ...

cardboard Cardboard is a generic term for heavy paper-based products. The construction can range from a thick paper known as paperboard to corrugated fiberboard which is made of multiple plies of material. Natural cardboards can range from grey to light b ...

paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distributed ...

Spanish cedar ''Cedrela odorata'' is a commercially important species of tree in the chinaberry family, Meliaceae, commonly known as Spanish cedar or Cuban cedar; it is also known as cedro in Spanish. Classification The genus ''Cedrela'' has undergone two m ...

has been described as the "best" kind of wood for cigar boxes because of its beautiful grain, fine texture, and pleasant odor and ability to keep out insects. Eucalyptus and yellow poplar have been popular substitutes that were sometimes stained and scented to resemble it. Other typical woods for cigar boxes include mahogany, elm, and white oak; less-popular are basswood,

Circassian walnut ''Juglans regia'', the Persian walnut, English walnut, Carpathian walnut, Madeira walnut, or especially in Great Britain, common walnut, is an Old World walnut tree species native to the region stretching from the Balkans eastward to the Himalay ...

, and rosewood. There are several types of cigar boxes, differing both in construction and purpose. The following are common boxes: *

Cabinet selection Cabinet selection is a term for cigars purchased in a large, square, plain Spanish cedar cigar box called a ''cabinet box'', a ''slide-lid box'' or ''SLB'', or simply a ''cabinet''. It usually has a wooden slide-lid, although hinged lids are oc ...

, slid-lid or hinged lid, typically storing 25 or 50 cigars *8-9-8, round-sided box with three layers, counting 8, 9 and 8 cigars respectively. *Flat top or 13-topper, two layers with 12 on bottom and 13 on top *Boxes of box-pressed cigars, stored two layers with same number of cigars. Cigar boxes, labels, and bands are considered a subject of

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

, with businesses specializing in them and books printed on their design, meaning, and significance. As a result, cigar boxes and their corresponding labels can be considered

collectible A collectable (collectible or collector's item) is any object regarded as being of value or interest to a collector. Collectable items are not necessarily monetarily valuable or uncommon. There are numerous types of collectables and terms t ...

items. There is a growing movement of

guitars The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

and

ukulele The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings. The tone and volume of the instrumen ...

s being made from cigar boxes and other materials not usually used for musical instruments.

Media

Image:R J short churchills.jpg, A hinged-lid flat top box of box-pressed cigars Image:Cigar box guitar collection.jpg, Cigar box guitar collection Image:Cigar box.jpg, Cigar box with cigar cases Image:Bloomer-Club-cigars-satire-p-adv054.JPG, An example of cigar label art

References

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External links

The Canadian Museum of Civilization - Cigar Containers that Store Our Past 1883-1935
Cigars Containers Tobacciana fr:Boîte à cigare it:Cigar box ja:シガーボックス zh:雪茄盒