incised lines made with a sharp point and filled with red 
color. The pattern seems to be derived from the use of a 
coin to produce concentric circles or petal shapes. Boxes 
may also be inset with mother-of-pearl or other con- 
trasting material. 
The spatula (paletica, pajuecla), occasionally fastened 
to the chimo box lid by a cord or chain (27; Tesser, 
pers. comm.), may be made of horn, wood, bone or sil- 
ver. It is utilized instead of the finger tip to apply chim6é 
to the teeth. Boxes with spatulas are decorated, usually 
by a local jeweller, with inlaid or appliquéd designs in 
silver to match the chain by which the spatula is attached. 
This type of box is a luxury. 
A special kind of box is made from the tip of the horn 
and is called céngo/fo in Trujillo State (Valero, pers. 
comm.) but congola in Lara State (27). Shapes adapted 
to the form of the material are made—birds, fishes (called 
caribe) and other animals. 
These zoomorphic boxes are prepzred in two halves, 
so skillfully joined as to appear as one piece and are 
highly polished. They are engagingly carved with round 
eyes and wings, etc., drawn with a minimum of lines. 
Pinedo (pers. comm.) states that these boxes are made 
only for sale to collectors of curiosities or to tourists and 
are not meant for actual use. On the other hand, Valero 
(pers.comm. ), describing their manufacture, adds matter- 
of-factly, **When the maker has a little artistic skill, he 
‘arves a box in the form of a bird or animal.” ' 
Chimo boxes are carried by men usually in a trouser 
pocket. Unless they have a pocket in the dress, women 
wrap the box in a handkerchief and tuck it into the 
bosom. 
Occasionally, when placing chimo in a box, a user will 
add a freshly plucked aromatic leaf ‘‘to give a better 
flavor’. One leaf, observed in Boconé (39), was said to 
(22 | 
