Diploma Graduation Porcelain Limoges Box, Numbered

A rolled diploma, the reward for years of study, sits at the heart of this graduation piece. It is a hand-painted porcelain Limoges box made in Limoges, France, and numbered as part of a limited edition of 500.

Cap, Gown and Porcelain

Cards get read and set aside, and flowers fade within a week. A porcelain diploma is something a graduate can keep for decades, moving it from a dorm shelf to a first apartment and eventually to a home office. The numbered edition gives it a little extra weight as a record of the day.

Every Kind of Commencement

• Hand-painted porcelain made in Limoges, France, numbered in an edition of 500
• Suits high school, college, law, medical or nursing school graduates
• Pairs with mortarboard, book and owl pieces in a scholar's grouping

Turning the Tassel

Hand it over at a graduation party, slip it into a carry-on before a commencement trip, or save it for the moment a doctoral student finally defends. Teachers and professors retiring after a long career also enjoy one as a nod to all the diplomas they helped earn.

Small boxes like this first became fashionable in 18th-century France, when they held snuff, pills and beauty patches. Today they hold rings, class pins and folded notes from proud parents.