HEATING AND LIGHTING UTENSILS IN NATIONAL MUSEUM 95 



•which disappears inside, the lid boinir closed over it. (PI. 816, f\g. 1; 

 €at. No. 151485, Massachusetts about 1840, M. F. Savage; 3.9 inches 

 (10 cm.) diameter, G.l inches (15.5 cm.) high.) 



VESSELS I'OK CONSEHVINO HEAT 



The conservation of heat has been known for a long time by 

 rivilized man. This object to be carried out requires an experimental 

 Icnowledge of the conductivity of materials, seen in the hay baskets 

 used by the Jcavs to keep food warm over the ceremonial Sabbath 

 and mentioned by Juvenal in his satires. There has apparently 

 been a progress or at least a continuity from the early heat preserva- 

 tion devices to the tireless cooker. The Chinese use a padded recep- 

 tacle for the teapot to keep the tea warm, consisting of an ex- 

 cellently woven basket or an embellished metal box fitted with thick 

 pads into which the teapot is thrust, leaving only the end of the 

 spout exposed for pouring. In the specimen figured the teapot is 

 pewter, having a perforated tube in w^hich the tea is placed for 

 steeping. (Ph 82, fig. 3; Cat. No. 325611, Canton, China; Philadel- 

 phia Centennial Exposition, 1876; 7.5 inches (19 cm.) diameter, 6.7 

 inches (17 cm.) high.) 



As in retaining heat, the cooling of substances depends on the 

 conductivity of materials. There is little evidence that the cool- 

 ing principle was known veiy far backward in time. The only 

 example in the Museum collection is a "Calcutta water cooler" 

 used in India. It consists of a glass water jar fitting into a tin 

 case padded with cloth and having a similar cover sliding down 

 over the jar. This device is said to be effective in keeping water 

 cold. While this device is commonly known as a feature of Cal- 

 cutta usage, it does not appear to be native, probably having been 

 introduced from England. (PI. 82, figs. 1, 2; Cat. No. 325612, 

 Calcutta, India; 6.3 inches (16 cm.) diameter, 7.1 inches (18 cm.) 

 high.) 



PIRK FANS AND BBI.LOWS 



The first aids for blowing up the fire appear to be fans. These 

 are found both among uncivilized tribes and civilized peoples. They 

 were common at the period of the open fireplace in America and 

 Europe. The turkey- wing brush and fan was a familiar object of the 

 earlier American domestic arrangements. Palm-leaf fans, whose 

 normal use was for cooling the face, were also made to serve in an 

 emergency as a fire fan. The same may be said of the specimens 

 shown as fire fans in the rare cases where fans were used for personal 

 comfort. 



The San Bias Indian fan is an excellent piece of weaving, espe- 

 cially marked in the tubular handle. It is used for blowing the fire 

 and also in ceremony. Miss Frances Densmore has collected the 



