Antique Copper Elephant Betelnut Nutcracker

Antique Copper Betelnut Nutcracker

A MUST HAVE FOR ANY REAL COLLECTOR

Authentic handmade Copper Areca or Betelnut Nutcracker. Expertly crafted by Karen Hill Tribe people who live in the Golden Triangle Reion. Nutcrackers such as this are used throughout South Asia and Southeast Asia to slice open the Areca Nut which is then inclosed in a betel leaf (along with other spices) and chewed. This concoction is sometimes referred to as betelnut. I have chewed betelnut myself and have found the experience quite stimulating. I got it during a trip to the Golden Triangle Region where the Karen Hill Tribe live from the Karen woman in the photo with the hat. I have included more information regarding areca nut chewing below.

Dimensions: Can be seen in the photos.

Materials: Copper.

Age: circa 1900.

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Thanks for your time and consideration... sidthesquid

Chewing the mixture of areca nut and betel leaf is a tradition, custom or ritual which dates back thousands of years from South Asia to the Pacific. It constitutes an important and popular cultural activity in many Asian and Oceanic countries, including India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Papua New Guinea, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Taiwan,Myanmar, Cambodia, the Solomon Islands, Thailand, Laos, the Maldives and Vietnam. It is not known how and when the areca nut and the betel leaf were combined together into one psychoactive drug. Archaeological evidence from Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines suggests that they have been used in tandem for four thousand years or more.

Display of the items usually included in a chewing session. The betel leaves are folded in different ways according to the country and have mostly some calcium hydroxide daubed inside. Slices of the dry areca nut are on the upper left hand and slices of the tender areca nut on the upper right. The pouch on the lower right contains tobacco, a relatively recent introduction.

Betelnut-cutter from Bali/Indonesia

Areca nut and betel leaf consumption in the world.

Chewing the mixture of areca nut and betel leaf is a tradition, custom or ritual which dates back thousands of years from South Asia to the Pacific. It constitutes an important and popular cultural activity in many Asian and Oceanic countries, including India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Papua New Guinea, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Taiwan,Myanmar, Cambodia, the Solomon Islands, Thailand, Laos, the Maldives and Vietnam. It is not known how and when the areca nut and the betel leaf were combined together into one psychoactive drug. Archaeological evidence from Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines suggests that they have been used in tandem for four thousand years or more.^[3]

In Vietnam, the areca nut and the betel leaf are such important symbols of love and marriage that in Vietnamese the phrase "legend of betel and areca" (chuyện trầu cau) is synonymous with marriage. The tradition of chewing areca nuts starts the talk between the groom's parents and the bride's parents about the young couple's marriage. Therefore the leaves and juices are used ceremonially in Vietnamese weddings. The folk tale explaining the origin of this Vietnamese tradition is a good illustration of the belief that the combination of areca nut and the betel leaf is ideal to the point that they are practically inseparable, like an idealized married couple.[1]

Malay culture and tradition hold betel nut and leaves in high esteem. Traditionally, guests who visits a Malay house are given a tray of betel nuts and betel leaves, the same way as one offering drinks to guests now. There's even a Malay proverb about the betel nut, "bagaikan pinang dibelah dua", loosely translated, like a betel nut divided in half. It usually refers to newlyweds, who are compatible to each other, just like a betel nut when divided in half. The Proverb is closely analogous to the contemporary "two peas in a pod".

In the Indian Subcontinent the chewing of betel and areca nut dates back to the pre-Vedic period Harappan empire.^[4] Formerly in India and Sri Lanka it was a custom of the royalty to chew Areca nut and betel leaf. Kings had special attendants carrying a box with the ingredients for a good chewing session. There was also a custom to chew Areca nut and betel leaf among lovers because of its breath-freshening and relaxant properties. Hence there was a sexual symbolism attached to the chewing of the nut and the leaf. The areca nut represented the male and the betel leaf the female principle. Considered an auspicious ingredient in Hinduism, the Areca nut is still used along with betel leaf in religious ceremonies and also while honoring individuals in most of Southern Asia.

In Assam it is a tradition to offer Pan-tamul (Betel leaves and raw areca nut) to guests after tea or meals in a brass plate with stands called a Bota. Among the Assamese the areca nut also has a variety of uses during religious and marriage ceremonies, where it has the role of a fertility symbol. A tradition from Upper Assam is to invite guests to wedding receptions by offering a few areca nuts with betel leaves. During Bihu, the husori players are offered areca nuts and betel leaves by each household while their blessings are solicited.

Spanish mariner Álvaro de Mendaña reported how the Solomon Islanders were chewing the nut and the leaf with caustic lime that stained their mouths red. He noticed that friendly and genial chief Malope in Santa Isabel Island was offering him the stuff as a token of friendship every time they met.^[5]

The adding of tobacco leaf to the chewing mixture is a relatively recent introduction, for tobacco was introduced from the American continent in colonial times.