INDIAN; INDORE
Pair of boxes for betel nut (paan)
circa 1870 - 1875RCIN 11381
Paan is a mixture of ingredients such as shavings of betel nut (a mild stimulant with similar effects to caffeine), seeds, coconut and occasionally tobacco wrapped in a betel leaf, which was offered at the end of formal court gatherings. The individual hinged covers are designed to store the various ingredients used to prepare paan. The compartments are in the shape of betel leaves.