Producer unknown to us
Bread stamp
Asia, Uzbekistan, Tashkent
Mid-20th century
Wood, lathed, fire decorations; metal tines
Wolf-Dieter Seiwert (ethnologist) acquired this bread stamp during a trip to Bukhara
Purchased by the Museum from Inge Seiwert in 1986
WAs 2838
This is a so-called bread stamp used to decorate and break up flat bread dough before baking. Metal pins are inserted into the round wooden handles in circular patterns, and pressed into the dough. The collector saw these tools several times in the bazaars of Bukhara.
Wolf-Dieter Seiwert (*1945) had started working at Leipzig museum in 1973. He was part of a research focus group on pastoral nomadism in the deserts between West Africa and Central Asia. His professional expertise was the Maghreb in North Africa. Before 1989, he traveled to Libya, Mauritania and other countries.
Frank Usbeck