Antique Hindu Brass Box with Peacocks and Elephants

Asian antique Beaten Brass Betel Nut Pandan Box, Northern India. Beautiful antique hand hammered Asian round brass betel with a lid and delicate engravings with floral design handle hand crafted by skilled artisans from Northern India. Indian Beaten Copper Betel Nut Pandan Box with hand hammered beaten floral and incised decoration used to store betel leaf, lime, tobacco and the nut from the areca palm. This mixture of ingredients when prepared and placed in the mouth for long periods gives the user a mild aphrodisiac effect. The preparation of the betel nut with lime stored in ornate boxes with several smaller internal containers was popular all over Asia and is still a common practice in Myanmar and India and among the hill tribes of many S. E. Asian countries. Engraved with intricate designs on the lid which has a carved floral design handle and a latch in front for opening or closing the box and for safekeeping. Nicely hand-hammered with intricate details. Please check photo #5, there is about 1 inch damage area on the side of the box. Museum quality Asian Hand-hammered decorative Islamic brass folk art metalwork collector treasure box. Measures: Diameter 7 in. x Height 4 in. The box has a rich, deep brown patina. Quality of Mughal style. A pandan was used to store the pan, or betel quid after it had been stuffed and rolled ready to eat, rather than for the individual ingredients. The chewing of betel is an ancient Asian tradition comparable to tobacco in the western world. Betel consists of three main ingredients: the areca nut, betel leaf and lime paste. Betel was, and still is enormously popular throughout Asia and plays a major role in the entertaining of guests, in courtship and marriage, and in the traditional etiquette of the royal courts, where it often forms part of the state regalia.[1] Research on several pandan boxes has been published by Zebrowski.[2] Brownrigg, H. Betel Cutters...

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