Tooth Blackener
P49
From: Borneo | Sarawak | Silat River
Curatorial Section: Oceanian
| Object Number | P49 |
| Current Location | Collections Storage |
| Provenience | Borneo | Sarawak | Silat River |
| Date Made | Before 1897 |
| Section | Oceanian |
| Materials | Black Earth |
| Description | Black earth for staining teeth. Batu tunai. Blackening the teeth, a form of "cosmetical adornment in which almost every tribe in Borneo indulges." "The staining is effected with a paste made of a greyish-black shale rock, called 'Tunai,' powdered very fine and mixed with water and the ashes of a wood. . . . " (The Home-Life of Borneo Head-Hunters) Used by both men and women. |
| Length | 11.5 cm |
| Outside Diameter | 0.8 cm |
| Credit Line | Gift of Dr. William H. Furness 3rd., 1898 |
Report problems and issues to digitalmedia@pennmuseum.org.