Also 6 caskytt, 7 cascate, 9 casquet. [Of uncertain etymology: the form suggests a dim. of CASK; but casket in fact occurs earlier than cask, and is without precedent as to meaning in Fr. or other lang.
F. casquet is quoted by Littré only of 16th c. in sense ‘light helmet,’ which is also the sense of Sp. casquete. Skeat conjectures that casket may have been corrupted from Fr. cassette ‘small casket, chest, cabinet,’ etc., dim. of casse box, chest, CASE; this would give the sense, but evidence of, or analogy for, the corruption is wanting. Moreover Littré has F. cassette only from 16th c., when it may have been adopted from It. cassetta: there is no trace of it in Eng. in 15th or 16th c.]
1. A small box or chest for jewels, letters, or other things of value, itself often of valuable material and richly ornamented.
1467. in Eng. Gilds (1870), 379. The same quayer to be put in a boxe called a Casket.
1471. J. Paston, Lett., 670, III. 7. Syche othyr wryghtynges and stuff as was in my kasket.
1530. Palsgr., 203/1. Casket or hamper, escrayn.
1570. in Arnot, Hist. Edinburgh, 30. The confident of the Earl of Bothwell … delivered to the Earls servant his Casket of letters.
1596. Shaks., Merch. V., II. vii. 14. I will suruay the inscriptions, backe againe: What saies this leaden casket?
1712. Pope, Rape Lock, I. 133. This casket India’s glowing gems unlocks.
1876. Humphrey, Coin Coll. Man., i. 6. A richly carved casket of ivory.
† b. Money-box or ‘chest’ (? pseudo-arch).
1832. L. Hunt, Sir R. Esher (1850), 357. An order on the King’s casket for a thousand pounds.
2. fig.
1595. Shaks., John, V. i. 40. They found him dead … An empty Casket, where the Iewell of life … was rob’d and tane away.
1669. Sturmy, Mariner’s Mag., A iij b. Ransack this Cascate (therefore) where you’l find plenty of Jewels to adorn the Mind.
1805. Wordsw., Prelude, V. (1850), 113. A volume … Poor earthly Casket of immortal verse.
1822. Hazlitt, Table-t., II. x. 223. I unlock the casket of memory.
b. Sometimes used as the title of a selection of musical or literary ‘gems.’
1850. (title) Casket of Modern and Popular Songs.
1871. (title) Casquet of Gems for the Pianoforte.
1877. (title) Casquet of Literature.
3. A coffin. U.S.
1870. Corresp. in New York. In America a coffin is called a casket.
1881. Times, 24 Sept., 6/1. (New York Corresp.) Here the casket [of President Garfield] will be placed on the train for Cleveland. Ibid. (1885), 6 Aug., 5/1. Members of the Grant Post mounted guard and stood around the casket in the funeral coach [of General Grant].
Casket sb.2, obs. form of CASQUET, a helmet.
Casket sb.3, another form of GASKET.
