Container of what?

[amena]

Hello everyone
I hope not to commit a mortal sin by posting this question concerning a mysterious container, which however is not made of silver, but of iron.
It is very small in size and opens by pressing the lever where indicated by the red arrow.

It may contain only a very small amount of dust.
But dust of what? The matter intrigues me a lot.
The shape makes me think of India or its neighbors.
Can anyone give me some information?
Thanks for attention.
Amena

[dragonflywink]

Islamic gunpowder flask...

~Cheryl

[AG2012]

Hi,
Very small for gunpowder ? Yes, it was meant to be small because they held fine-grain gunpowder used to set off (or prime) the main charge in the barrel.
Something like the primer of the bullet.
Regards

[Damon]

Amena

A nice item.

Search "talahiq" and you will find quite a bit of information

Damon

[amena]

Thanks everyone for the help.
I doubted that such a small object could be used for gunpowder. Instead I verified that what Ag 2012 claims is correct. I filled the container completely with powder and was able to fill the pan of a flintlok more than 20 times. Enough for a hunting trip.

Best
Amena

[Damon]

Additional information at http://omanisilver.com/contents/en-us/d ... hlock.html

This is a virtual museum site

Scroll down about half way to see three examples

Damon

[amena]

Fantastic, thanks a lot.
I found almost identical items