Cylindrical ivory box, carved and openwork decoration, inlaid with a black, pitch-like substance

The box belongs to a group of 11 closely related containers whose origins in either Mamluk Egypt or Nasrid Spain have been debated. The inscription bands at the top and bottom of the box consist solely of good wishes for its owner, and there is no information on who this owner might have been or where the box was made. The inscription was originally surrounded by a dark layer of pigment of the same type as the fine black inlays, which still remain in several places.

Boxes of this type might have been made for aromatics that were released through the fine openings.