Cleveland Museum of Art

Soap Box and Sponge Box Set

Date

1769

Medium

soft-paste porcelain with enamel and gilt decoration

Culture

France, Sèvres

Department

Decorative Art and Design

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

In 18th-century France the toilette , an elaborate dressing ceremony practiced by both men and women, became increasingly ritualized and public, creating a demand for matching containers and implements like this soap and sponge box. The box with the lid pierced in floral patterns would have been used to carry the sponge. The first recorded sale of a boîte d’éponge was to Louis XV in September of 1767.

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