SB.1.66
Container / Snuffbox
Container / Snuffbox. Nandu. Kenya. No 87. XI.F.11. Original list: "Nandi. Doll. Leather, beads, calabash. Woman". Small gourd-shaped container, bulbous, brown in color, surrounded by several strips of small white and multicolored glass beads which are structured in three openwork triangles. The container is closed by means of a flexible stopper of unknown material shaped like a nail and provided with an iron gripping chain. The object gives off a strong smell of dry tobacco and also contains a residue of agglomerated brown matter. Containers of this type, commonly known as "snuff boxes" were very often prestigious objects that could contain snuff, but also other substances such as gunpowder or herbs or medicinal powder. "The tocacco leaf (...) is processed for snuff by being dried, crushed, and mixed with fat (and sometimes natron). Implemant for snuff-taking include special nose clips and small containers for carrying the snuff. (... Such containers are worn as ornaments and are treasured possessions "(EC Burt. Seattle Art Museum. 1985: 25). See similar object not captioned in A. Fedders, C. Salavadori. 1980: 52
Category: Snuff Box
Material: Bottle gourd. Glass beads. Iron chain. Leather cork.
Location: Kenya
Dimensions in Centimeters:
Length: 10
Width: 6.5
Height: 6
Other dim.: Original list: W: 6 H: 10 L: 6.5