Areca nut scissors – kacip

The presented tool comes from the collection of the Polish zoologist, Prof. Michał Siedlecki (1873–1940) who, similarly to Prof. Marian Raciborski before, resided in Java between 1907–1908, in the famous Botanical Garden in Buitenzorg (present-day Bogor). Fascinated with Javanese culture, he brought many ethnographic exhibits back to his homeland. Kacip – a tool commonly called betel scissors. It is used to cut the nuts of the palm called areca areka katechu (pinang) – one of the main ingredients of the betel stimulant for chewing. The main ingredients of betel, in addition to areca nuts, are betel leaves, i.e. Piper betle (siri), and lime (kapur). ID no.: 36174/MEK Time and place: early 20th century, Jawa Museum: The Seweryn Udziela Ethnographic Museum in Kraków https://muzea.malopolska.pl/en/objects-list/1517 Digitalisation: RDW MIC, Virtual Małopolska project