Tuesday February 7, 2012

Couple’s impressive collection of antique tiffin carriers dates back to 1870s

By ANDREA FILMER
andrea@thestar.com.my

GEORGE TOWN: Penang's “No Free Plastic Bag” policy may be inconvenient to some, but not for staff nurse M. Punita.

The 30-year-old, who is an avid antique collector like husband J. Prakash, has been using tiffin carriers to carry food since young.

Her fondness for tiffin carriers grew after she married Prakash, 31, and the traditional food containers became the couple's first collection of antiques.

“When I was in school and had extra classes, my father would come by to pass me food in a tiffin carrier.

Stacking up: Prakash and Punita showing off their tiffin carrier collection at their home in George Town Monday.

“Now, we have over 70 tiffin carriers dating back to the 1870s,” Punita said.

Bringing out a large four-part iron container complete with a compartment for charcoal, Prakash said this tiffin carrier was the oldest the couple had.

“This weighs 8kg on its own. Early tiffin carriers were normally made of iron, but we think this one was meant for families rather than individuals as it is very heavy and would have been rather expensive in the 1870s to 1880s,” the college programme leader said.

While some of the couple's collection consists of sturdy iron and brass containers made mostly in India, others boast vibrant colours and designs.

“The Baba Nyonya tiffin carriers are my favourite. They are colourful, made of enamel and many have delicate motives of peonies, butterflies and the phoenix on the sides,” Punita said.

She added that most Baba Nyonya tiffin carriers used in Malacca in the 1930s were made in the then Czechoslovakia some with good inscriptions in gold on the sides.

“We also have a wooden lacquer tiffin carrier made in Burma in the 1950s, a special Cheng Beng (Chinese All Souls' Day) multi-layered tiffin carrier used for prayers and another brass carrier held together with two spoons that was made in Indonesia,” Punita said.

The smallest one in the couple's collection was sourced right here in Penang.

Measuring just 10cm in height, the tiny aluminium carrier fits comfortably in Prakash's palm.

“We bought this from a collector who heard about us a couple years ago. This carrier is a toy and was made for children to play masak-masak (cooking) in the 1960s,” Prakash said.

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Tuesday February 7, 2012

Couple’s impressive collection of antique tiffin carriers dates back to 1870s

By ANDREA FILMER andrea@thestar.com.my

By ANDREA FILMER
andrea@thestar.com.my