Collection Online
Betel-box

Betel-box
(Kun-it)
(mid 20th century)

Medium
lacquer, bamboo

Measurements
(a-d) 22.2 × 22.8 cm diameter (overall)

Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Gift of John McCarthy in memory of Edwin and Margot McCarthy through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program, 2012

Gallery location
Level 1, NGV International

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About this work

Kun-it are cylindrical lidded boxes used for storing the ingredients required in the preparation of quids, chewable portions of leaves from the betel plant. An essential item of hospitality in a Burmese home, a kun-it set is the equivalent of a tea or coffee service. Two internal trays hold chopped areca nuts, various spices, lime paste, metal nut-cutters and dry tobacco leaves. The bottom compartment is filled with heart-shaped betel-vine leaves. When the box is presented, visitors take a leaf, smear it with lime paste and wrap it into a quid around a slice of areca nut and selected spices, before chewing the contents.

Artwork Details

Place/s of Execution
Burma

Accession Number
2012.43.a-d

Department
Asian Art

This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of The Gordon Darling Foundation