The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 29, 2024

Snuff Container

Snuff Container

1800s–1900s

Did You Know?

The snuff and tobacco held in this container were believed to enable communication between humans and ancestors.

Description

The shape and material of gourd snuff containers—like a woman’s womb, the gourd contains and nurtures the seed—suggest they were made for female users and allude to procreation and fecundity.
  • 1981–2007
    Marc and Denyse Ginzberg, New York, NY
    2007
    (Sotheby's, Paris, France, Sept. 10, 2007, lot 96)
    2010
    (Jacaranda Tribal Art Gallery, New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    2010–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • The Art of Daily Life: Portable Objects from Southern Africa. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 17, 2011-February 26, 2012).
    Cleveland Museum of Art, (4/16/11-2/26/12); "The Art of Daily Life: Portable Objects from Southeast Africa" cat. no. 17
  • {{cite web|title=Snuff Container|url=false|author=|year=1800s–1900s|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2010.200