Comb case with two wig combs

Attributed to Paul Bennett

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 510

This comb case with two combs is richly but simply decorated. It was made in 1685 in Port Royal, Jamaica, which was then Britain’s wealthiest colony. It is a rather poignant expression of a painful cultural moment. Bought with wealth generated by enslaved Africans, it embodies the English appreciation of Jamaica’s glorious natural history and the simultaneous savaging of it. At once precious and humble, it reflects the resourcefulness of local merchants who devised a product that was portable, inscribable, and at least somewhat useful (a wig comb in two sizes, one for the wig the other for lice).

Comb case with two wig combs, Attributed to Paul Bennett (active ca. 1673–88) of Port Royal, Turtle shell, silver, Jamaican, Port Royal

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Left to Right: 2018.7.1, 2018.7.3, 2018.1.2

Comb case with two wig combs, Attributed to Paul Bennett (active ca. 1673–88) of Port Royal, Turtle shell, silver, Jamaican, Port Royal
Comb case with two wig combs, Attributed to Paul Bennett (active ca. 1673–88) of Port Royal, Turtle shell, silver, Jamaican, Port Royal
Comb case with two wig combs, Attributed to Paul Bennett (active ca. 1673–88) of Port Royal, Turtle shell, silver, Jamaican, Port Royal
Comb case with two wig combs, Attributed to Paul Bennett (active ca. 1673–88) of Port Royal, Turtle shell, silver, Jamaican, Port Royal
Comb case with two wig combs, Attributed to Paul Bennett (active ca. 1673–88) of Port Royal, Turtle shell, silver, Jamaican, Port Royal
Comb case with two wig combs, Attributed to Paul Bennett (active ca. 1673–88) of Port Royal, Turtle shell, silver, Jamaican, Port Royal
Comb case with two wig combs, Attributed to Paul Bennett (active ca. 1673–88) of Port Royal, Turtle shell, silver, Jamaican, Port Royal
Comb case with two wig combs, Attributed to Paul Bennett (active ca. 1673–88) of Port Royal, Turtle shell, silver, Jamaican, Port Royal
Comb case with two wig combs, Attributed to Paul Bennett (active ca. 1673–88) of Port Royal, Turtle shell, silver, Jamaican, Port Royal

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