Double-sided brass comb with curved ends, decorated with chased pattern depicting scenes from the seraglio, Persian, 1801-1910.

Made:
1801-1910 in Iran
Double-sided brass comb with curved ends

Creative Commons LicenseThis image is released under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Licence

Buy this image as a print 

Buy

License this image for commercial use at Science and Society Picture Library

License

Double-sided brass comb with curved ends
Science Museum Group
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Double-sided brass comb with curved ends, decorated with chased pattern depicting scenes from the seraglio, Persian, 1801-1910. Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc. The amount of zinc alters the colour and lowers the melting point of the brass. Up to 10% zinc the brass has a rich red colour, whilst brasses containing 15% zinc have a golden colour. Further amounts of zinc give various yellow colours. Antique copper alloys have often been described as bronzes but modern investigative techniques have revealed that they are, in fact, brasses.The earliest known brass objects date from 1300 BC and are from Asia Minor.

Details

Category:
Ethnography and Folk Medicine
Collection:
Sir Henry Wellcome's Museum Collection
Object Number:
A658146
Materials:
leather and beads
type:
comb - grooming tool