Bound Chest

The Bound Chest is an artifact which appears in, and its origin lies long before the events of the game.

Story
According to legend, when monsters overran the kingdom of Hyrule, the Minish granted the Picori Blade and Light Force to the Hero of Men, who used them to drive off the monsters. It is revealed within The Minish Cap that the hero actually sealed the evil monsters within the Bound Chest, locking it with the sword itself. A secret part of the legend, known only to the Royal Family, explained that the Light Force was sealed within the royal line of princesses.

In celebration of the victory, the kingdom held a yearly festival, which included a sword-fighting tournament. The winner of the tournament is allowed to touch the blade, still resting inside the Bound Chest. As The Minish Cap begins, Vaati is declared the winner of the tournament, and is shown to the Bound Chest. However, because the commonly known legend did not specify where the Light Force was hidden, Vaati believed that the relic was in fact within the Bound Chest, and shattered the Picori Blade in order to open it. However, the Bound Chest only contained the once-sealed evil, which escaped to plague the world again.

Trivia

 * It is possible that the Bound Chest is part of the ancient pedestal that the Four Sword resides within in Four Swords and Four Sword Adventures, as the sword is used to seal Vaati and Ganon until it is removed.
 * The Bound Chest is based upon Pandora's Box, which was used at the beginning of humanity, in Greek mythology, to seal all the evils of the world until it was opened and they were released.