Deccan Pandan Box with Wheels

Betel leaf shaped pandan box from the Deccan region in brass. The box is decorated by geometric open fretwork designs on the lid and sides, with engraved floral designs between them. It has brass wheels at the base so the container could be wheeled around to pass out the paan. Such early pandans had no compartments inside, and so, were probably used for serving ready rolled paan.
The history of chewing paan dates back about 2500 years and its beautifully crafted accessories elevated it to a level of ceremony, much like the Japanese and tea. The word pandan was coined during the Sultanate and Mughal period joining the Hindi word paan to the Persian suffix dan. “The offering of the royal paan to a courtier was a sign of extraordinary favour, and an even greater honour would be the offering of the betel container (pandan)” - Mark Zebrowski.