An Alabaster Box

{{Infobox film

| name = An Alabaster Box

| image = An Alabaster Box (1917, lobby card).jpg

| caption = Lobby card

| director = Chester Withey

| producer =

| writer = A. Van Buren Powell

| story = Mary Eleanor Freeman
Florence Morse Kingsley

| starring = Alice Joyce
Marc McDermott
Harry Ham

| music =

| cinematography = Viola Lawrence

| editing =

| studio =Vitagraph Company of America

| distributor = V-L-S-E

| released = {{Film date|1917|09|10}}

| runtime = 5 reels

| country = United States

| language = Silent (English intertitles)

| budget =

| gross =

}}

An Alabaster Box is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by Chester Withey and starring Alice Joyce, Marc McDermott, and Harry Ham.McCaffrey & Jacobs p. 160 It was produced by the Vitagraph Company of America and distributed by V-L-S-E. The story is based on a novel by Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman and Florence Morse Kingsley.

The film tells the story of Lydia Orr, a mysterious young woman who arrives in a conservative New England town with plans to open a drugstore. As she challenges local prejudices and hidden secrets, her past and motives slowly unfold. {{Cite AV media |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0007616/plotsummary/ |title=An Alabaster Box (1917) - Plot - IMDb |language=en-US |access-date=2025-06-19 |via=www.imdb.com}}

Plot

Lydia Orr, a quiet and graceful young woman, unexpectedly arrives in the town of Tressly and purchases the vacant drugstore owned by the late Lemuel Crittendon. The townspeople are suspicious, especially when Lydia hires the disgraced Jim Dodge as her assistant and befriends his troubled wife, Fanny.

As Lydia works to restore the drugstore and help her neighbors, her true identity and backstory gradually come to light. It is revealed that she is the niece of Lemuel Crittendon, seeking redemption for a family scandal and healing for herself and the town. Her selflessness and moral strength ultimately win over the hearts of the townsfolk.