Jeweler’s tool; brass; bird-shaped; 15 cm length, 9 cm width. A) body, B) tail screw
Donor:
Mr. and Mrs. Thomas J. Ready, Jr. Fund
Collection place:
Delhi State, India
Verbatim coll. place:
India, Delhi
Culture or time period:
Indian
Collector:
Renaldo "Ronald" Maduro
Collection date:
January 1970
Materials:
Brass (alloy)
Object type:
ethnography
Function:
1.6 Manufacturing, Constructing, Craft, and Professional Pursuits
Accession date:
November 11, 1970
Context of use:
Used by goldsmiths for a gentle source of heat in order to render gold pliable while used when needed by jewelers to produce steam; bird is filled with water, heated over fire, steam comes out of beak-nozzle in a thing cloud. *Note: Same class of objects also functions as holy water container for carrying water from sacred rivers, See page 81 “The Everyday Art of India - R. Bussabarger and B. Robins. The size of the hole in the beak-nozzle of this specimen precludes its function as a holy water container. Made by men, jewelers.
Department:
Asia (except western Russia)
Dimensions:
width 9 centimeters and length 15 centimeters
Comment:
Used by goldsmiths for a gentle source of heat in order to render gold pliable while used when needed by jewelers to produce steam; bird is filled with water, heated over fire, steam comes out of beak-nozzle in a thing cloud. *Note: Same class of objects also functions as holy water container for carrying water from sacred rivers, See page 81 “The Everyday Art of India - R. Bussabarger and B. Robins. The size of the hole in the beak-nozzle of this specimen precludes its function as a holy water container. Made by men, jewelers.
Loans:
S1977-1978 #35: El Camino College (February 10, 1978–June 27, 1978)