Tobacco pouch

Art Historical Context

This exquisite iron tobacco pouch hails from Japan's Edo period (1615–8), a time of peace and cultural flourishing under the Tokugawa shogunate. Introduced by Portuguese traders in the late th century, tobacco quickly became a fashionable social habit among samurai, merchants, and townsfolk. Compact at 4¾ inches long and 2⅜ inches wide, this pouch—known as a *tabako ire*— designed to hold finely shredded tobacco leaves, carried alongside a pipe (*kiseru*) tucked into one's kimono sash. Crafted from iron by an unknown artisan, the pouch exemplifies the meticulous metalworking skills of Edo-era...