The Peranakan palm leaf tobacco or cigarette case consists of two separate, flattened U-shaped pouches, each of which is open at one end. One of these U-shaped pouches is somewhat shorter in length but broader in width than the other. The shorter pouch is intended to serve as a cover, and it is just wide enough to enable the slimmer and longer pouch to fit snugly into its open end. This slimmer pouch was meant to hold thin, rolled strips of dry palm leaves, which served as tobacco wrappers for making hand-rolled cigarettes. The tobacco was usually carried in a separate silver container known as chelpa.
The custom of smoking palm leaf tobacco or cigarette is known to Singapore or Malaysia Malays, was probably more prevalent among traditional Indonesian Peranakans than their Straits Chinese counterparts in Singapore, Malacca and Penang. The traditional Straits Chinese of Malacca preferred chewing betel leaves to smoking, whether the Western imported type of Virginia cigarettes or tobacco.
In any case, when the palm leaf tobacco or cigarettes was lighted, both the leaf wrappers and the local variety of tobacco gave off a most acrid and unpleasant smell, so much so that the Nyonyas had to discourage their husbands from smoking tobacco at home. Tobacco was rarely used by Singaporean Straits Chinese. The Nyonyas, of course, did not smoke, because it was traditionally considered as bad etiquette for women to smoke.
But while the acrid smell was offensive, those beaded palm leaf tobacco or cigarette cases were often beautifully crafted. they are usually fabricated out of maroon, purple or green velvet, stiffened with cotton and paper, and then ornamented with small, coloured Rocaille beads of about 1mm in diameter, closely stitched together to form colourful designs of floral and foliated motifs, either with or without insects (butterflies and crickets), birds (quails, mandarin ducks, storks and cranes), and mythical beasts (qilins, dragons and phoenixes) - auspicious symbols all derived from ancient Chinese art motifs.
Sometimes, small faceted metallic beads, only about 0.5mm in diameter, are employed in combination with Rocaille glass beads for depicting these decorative motifs, which give these cases a jewel-like touch of luxury when they glimmer in the light.
The traditional Nyonyas of Indonesian who fabricated these cases even took the trouble to decorate the tops and bottoms of these U-shaped cases with beaded ornaments, painstakingly stitched into position. Such cases are rarely seen in the old family heirlooms of Straits Chinese homes. In many cases, most antique collectors mistakenly described these cases as a 'spectacle case', which to the fact that in Indonesian Peranakan communities, such articles were regularly used as cigarette cases.
Pictures below showing the example of the elegant beaded palm leaf tobacco or cigarette case made specially for the groom. The custom of smoking home-made cigarettes wrapped with dried palm leaves was adapted from the Javanese. In the hands of the artistic Indonesian Nyonyas, the humble cigarette case was turned into a thing of beauty.
Size : 15.5cm x 9cm
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